StockNews.com Downgrades Mercury General (NYSE:MCY) to Buy

Mercury General (NYSE:MCY) was downgraded by StockNews.com from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday.

Mercury General Stock Performance

Shares of MCY stock opened at $70.60 on Wednesday. Mercury General has a 12-month low of $36.96 and a 12-month high of $80.72. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.91 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.00 and a beta of 0.84. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $71.79 and a 200 day simple moving average of $63.02. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31, a current ratio of 0.33 and a quick ratio of 0.33.

Mercury General (NYSE:MCY) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The insurance provider reported $2.54 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.15 by $1.39. The firm had revenue of $1.53 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.37 billion. Mercury General had a return on equity of 18.04% and a net margin of 10.18%. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.14 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Mercury General will post 6.35 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In related news, VP Heidi C. Sullivan sold 1,076 shares of Mercury General stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $77.28, for a total transaction of $83,153.28. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 35.50% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Mercury General

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System boosted its position in Mercury General by 1.5% during the second quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System now owns 13,400 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $712,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company raised its holdings in Mercury General by 2.6% during the second quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 15,660 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $832,000 after buying an additional 396 shares in the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC raised its holdings in Mercury General by 4.6% during the third quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 10,287 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $648,000 after buying an additional 454 shares in the last quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets raised its holdings in Mercury General by 1.0% during the third quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 47,882 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $3,016,000 after buying an additional 481 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. raised its holdings in Mercury General by 72.0% during the third quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,151 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $72,000 after buying an additional 482 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 42.39% of the company’s stock.

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.