Mercury General (NYSE:MCY) Rating Increased to Strong-Buy at Wall Street Zen

Mercury General (NYSE:MCY) was upgraded by Wall Street Zen from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note issued on Sunday.

Separately, Zacks Research raised Mercury General from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 26th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and one has given a Buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Mercury General presently has an average rating of “Strong Buy” and an average target price of $100.00.

Mercury General Stock Performance

Shares of MCY stock opened at $98.01 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $94.91 and its two-hundred day moving average is $92.07. The firm has a market cap of $5.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.46 and a beta of 0.92. Mercury General has a 1 year low of $61.95 and a 1 year high of $103.86. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22, a quick ratio of 0.44 and a current ratio of 0.44.

Mercury General (NYSE:MCY) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 5th. The insurance provider reported $3.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.15 by $1.35. The company had revenue of $1.54 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.46 billion. Mercury General had a return on equity of 32.94% and a net margin of 13.68%. Analysts predict that Mercury General will post 11.38 earnings per share for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Mercury General

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Cetera Investment Advisers grew its holdings in shares of Mercury General by 2.2% during the first quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 5,284 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $466,000 after buying an additional 112 shares during the last quarter. Allworth Financial LP grew its holdings in shares of Mercury General by 18.6% during the third quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 753 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $64,000 after buying an additional 118 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its holdings in shares of Mercury General by 19.2% during the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 752 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $71,000 after buying an additional 121 shares during the last quarter. Hilton Head Capital Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of Mercury General by 32.6% during the first quarter. Hilton Head Capital Partners LLC now owns 541 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $48,000 after buying an additional 133 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Royce & Associates LP grew its holdings in shares of Mercury General by 0.6% during the third quarter. Royce & Associates LP now owns 28,511 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $2,417,000 after buying an additional 157 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 42.39% of the company’s stock.

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.