Mercury General (NYSE:MCY) Sees Strong Trading Volume Following Strong Earnings

Mercury General Corporation (NYSE:MCY) saw unusually-strong trading volume on Wednesday following a better than expected earnings announcement. Approximately 399,216 shares changed hands during trading, an increase of 69% from the previous session’s volume of 235,688 shares.The stock last traded at $86.4890 and had previously closed at $96.19.

The insurance provider reported $3.66 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.56 by $1.10. Mercury General had a net margin of 9.03% and a return on equity of 20.74%. The business had revenue of $1.54 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.37 billion.

Mercury General Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 26th. Investors of record on Thursday, March 12th will be issued a dividend of $0.3175 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, March 12th. This represents a $1.27 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.5%. Mercury General’s payout ratio is presently 16.02%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MCY has been the topic of several recent research reports. Zacks Research cut Mercury General from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, January 9th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Mercury General in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has assigned a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $100.00.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Mercury General

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in MCY. Inspire Investing LLC increased its stake in shares of Mercury General by 223.6% in the third quarter. Inspire Investing LLC now owns 18,820 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $1,596,000 after buying an additional 13,004 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. increased its position in shares of Mercury General by 16.1% in the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 470,905 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $31,711,000 after acquiring an additional 65,441 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. bought a new position in shares of Mercury General during the third quarter valued at about $3,141,000. LSV Asset Management purchased a new stake in shares of Mercury General during the third quarter worth about $4,722,000. Finally, Prudential Financial Inc. grew its stake in shares of Mercury General by 27.9% in the second quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. now owns 63,899 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $4,303,000 after purchasing an additional 13,937 shares during the last quarter. 42.39% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Mercury General Stock Performance

The company has a market cap of $4.79 billion, a PE ratio of 8.85 and a beta of 0.94. The company has a current ratio of 0.42, a quick ratio of 0.45 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24. The business has a fifty day moving average of $91.31 and a 200-day moving average of $84.90.

About Mercury General

Mercury General Corporation is a holding company headquartered in Los Angeles, California, that underwrites and markets property and casualty insurance products through its principal subsidiary, Mercury Insurance Company. Established in 1961, the company has built a reputation for offering a broad range of personal and commercial lines, with a focus on automobile coverage. Mercury General operates in key U.S. markets, deploying a mix of independent agents and direct distribution channels to serve policyholders.

The company’s product portfolio includes personal automobile insurance, homeowners and renters policies, as well as commercial automobile, business liability and umbrella insurance.