Algert Global LLC Increases Stake in Mercury General Co. (NYSE:MCY)

Algert Global LLC increased its position in shares of Mercury General Co. (NYSE:MCY) by 40.5% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 25,415 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 7,329 shares during the period. Algert Global LLC’s holdings in Mercury General were worth $1,690,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MCY. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its position in shares of Mercury General by 68.9% during the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,944 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $122,000 after buying an additional 793 shares during the period. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. grew its position in Mercury General by 3.3% in the 4th quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 7,496 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $498,000 after acquiring an additional 238 shares during the last quarter. Hennessy Advisors Inc. increased its stake in Mercury General by 6.8% in the fourth quarter. Hennessy Advisors Inc. now owns 192,300 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $12,784,000 after purchasing an additional 12,300 shares during the period. Precision Wealth Strategies LLC bought a new stake in shares of Mercury General during the fourth quarter worth $424,000. Finally, Prudential Financial Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Mercury General by 27.9% during the fourth quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. now owns 79,677 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $5,297,000 after purchasing an additional 17,370 shares during the period. 42.39% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Mercury General Stock Performance

MCY stock opened at $60.11 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 0.34 and a quick ratio of 0.34. Mercury General Co. has a 1-year low of $44.19 and a 1-year high of $80.72. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $54.84 and a 200 day moving average price of $60.36. The company has a market capitalization of $3.33 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.11 and a beta of 0.90.

Mercury General (NYSE:MCY) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 6th. The insurance provider reported ($2.29) earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($4.00) by $1.71. The firm had revenue of $1.31 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.36 billion. Mercury General had a net margin of 8.55% and a return on equity of 22.54%. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Mercury General Co. will post -0.5 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Mercury General Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 26th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, June 12th will be given a $0.3175 dividend. This represents a $1.27 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.11%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, June 12th. Mercury General’s payout ratio is 24.61%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Raymond James upgraded shares of Mercury General from an “outperform” rating to a “strong-buy” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $70.00 to $80.00 in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. StockNews.com lowered Mercury General from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, February 13th.

Mercury General Company Profile

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.