Mercury General (NYSE:MCY) Reaches New 12-Month High at $56.60

Mercury General Co. (NYSE:MCY)’s stock price hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $56.60 and last traded at $56.23, with a volume of 47935 shares. The stock had previously closed at $55.33.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, StockNews.com downgraded Mercury General from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 17th.

Mercury General Stock Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $3.13 billion, a PE ratio of 31.78 and a beta of 0.80. The company has a quick ratio of 0.30, a current ratio of 0.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $49.66 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $41.21.

Mercury General (NYSE:MCY) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 13th. The insurance provider reported $1.15 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.05 by $1.10. Mercury General had a return on equity of 1.17% and a net margin of 2.08%. The firm had revenue of $1.21 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.16 billion. Analysts predict that Mercury General Co. will post 2.9 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Mercury General Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 27th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, March 13th were given a dividend of $0.317 per share. This represents a $1.27 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.24%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, March 12th. Mercury General’s payout ratio is 72.99%.

Institutional Trading of Mercury General

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC bought a new position in shares of Mercury General during the 1st quarter valued at $399,000. Diversified Trust Co grew its position in Mercury General by 4.9% in the first quarter. Diversified Trust Co now owns 7,832 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $404,000 after acquiring an additional 369 shares in the last quarter. Counterpoint Mutual Funds LLC bought a new stake in Mercury General in the first quarter worth about $533,000. Range Financial Group LLC bought a new stake in Mercury General in the first quarter worth about $666,000. Finally, Capital CS Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Mercury General during the first quarter valued at approximately $681,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 42.39% of the company’s stock.

About Mercury General

Mercury General Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, engages in writing personal automobile insurance in the United States. The company also writes homeowners, commercial automobile, commercial property, mechanical protection, and umbrella insurance products. Its automobile insurance products include collision, property damage, bodily injury, comprehensive, personal injury protection, underinsured and uninsured motorist, and other hazards; and homeowners insurance products comprise dwelling, liability, personal property, and other coverages.