Mercury General Co. (NYSE:MCY) Position Increased by Quest Partners LLC

Quest Partners LLC grew its position in Mercury General Co. (NYSE:MCY) by 12,340.0% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 1,244 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after buying an additional 1,234 shares during the quarter. Quest Partners LLC’s holdings in Mercury General were worth $78,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in MCY. CWM LLC grew its position in Mercury General by 962.3% during the 2nd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 563 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 510 shares in the last quarter. National Bank of Canada FI purchased a new position in shares of Mercury General during the second quarter valued at $32,000. Allworth Financial LP lifted its stake in Mercury General by 1,190.5% in the 3rd quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 542 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 500 shares in the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its position in Mercury General by 8,262.5% during the 2nd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 669 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $35,000 after acquiring an additional 661 shares during the period. Finally, FSC Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Mercury General during the 2nd quarter valued at about $64,000. 42.39% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, StockNews.com lowered shares of Mercury General from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday.

Mercury General Trading Up 0.1 %

Shares of NYSE:MCY opened at $78.96 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $68.79 and a two-hundred day moving average of $61.36. The company has a quick ratio of 0.33, a current ratio of 0.33 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31. Mercury General Co. has a 12-month low of $36.81 and a 12-month high of $80.72. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.37 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.83 and a beta of 0.81.

Mercury General (NYSE:MCY) last released its quarterly earnings data 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. Mercury General had a return on equity of 18.04% and a net margin of 10.18%. The firm had revenue of $1.53 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.37 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.14 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts expect that Mercury General Co. will post 6.35 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Mercury General Cuts Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 26th. Investors of record on Thursday, December 12th will be paid a $0.317 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, December 12th. This represents a $1.27 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.61%. Mercury General’s payout ratio is 12.59%.

About Mercury General

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.