Louisiana State Employees Retirement System Buys Shares of 11,800 Mercury General Corporation $MCY

Louisiana State Employees Retirement System bought a new position in shares of Mercury General Corporation (NYSE:MCY) during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor bought 11,800 shares of the insurance provider’s stock, valued at approximately $1,040,000.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. Financial Management Professionals Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Mercury General during the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Hilton Head Capital Partners LLC bought a new position in Mercury General in the fourth quarter worth about $38,000. Mcguire Capital Advisors Inc. bought a new position in Mercury General in the fourth quarter worth about $40,000. IFP Advisors Inc boosted its stake in Mercury General by 79.4% in the fourth quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 506 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $48,000 after acquiring an additional 224 shares during the period. Finally, 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 valued at $64,000 after purchasing an additional 118 shares during the last quarter. 42.39% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Mercury General Stock Down 0.3%

MCY stock opened at $110.12 on Friday. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $101.06 and its two-hundred day moving average is $94.31. The company has a market capitalization of $6.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.26 and a beta of 0.89. Mercury General Corporation has a 52 week low of $64.21 and a 52 week high of $111.46. The company has a current ratio of 0.44, a quick ratio of 0.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22.

Mercury General (NYSE:MCY) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 5th. The insurance provider reported $3.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.15 by $1.35. Mercury General had a net margin of 13.68% and a return on equity of 32.94%. The business had revenue of $1.54 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.46 billion. On average, analysts forecast that Mercury General Corporation will post 11.38 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Mercury General Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 25th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, June 11th were paid a dividend of $0.3175 per share. This represents a $1.27 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, June 11th. Mercury General’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 8.37%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently issued reports on MCY shares. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Mercury General in a report on Thursday, June 4th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Mercury General from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Saturday. Finally, Zacks Research raised Mercury General from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 26th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and one has issued a Buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Strong Buy” and a consensus price target of $100.00.

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.