Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC Purchases 88,767 Shares of Mercury General Co. (NYSE:MCY)

Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC grew its stake in shares of Mercury General Co. (NYSE:MCY - Free Report) by 102.2% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 175,641 shares of the insurance provider's stock after acquiring an additional 88,767 shares during the period. Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC owned 0.32% of Mercury General worth $11,677,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in Mercury General by 145.1% in the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 554 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $37,000 after purchasing an additional 328 shares during the period. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. acquired a new stake in shares of Mercury General during the fourth quarter worth $44,000. Sterling Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Mercury General by 772.9% in the fourth quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 742 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $49,000 after acquiring an additional 657 shares in the last quarter. Millstone Evans Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Mercury General in the fourth quarter valued at about $60,000. Finally, Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC bought a new position in Mercury General during the fourth quarter worth about $68,000. Institutional investors own 42.39% of the company's stock.

Mercury General Price Performance

Mercury General stock traded up $2.99 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $60.11. 348,801 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 402,172. The company has a current ratio of 0.34, a quick ratio of 0.34 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. Mercury General Co. has a twelve month low of $44.19 and a twelve month high of $80.72. The company has a market cap of $3.33 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.11 and a beta of 0.90. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $54.84 and a two-hundred day moving average of $60.36.

Mercury General (NYSE:MCY - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 6th. The insurance provider reported ($2.29) EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($4.00) by $1.71. The business had revenue of $1.31 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.36 billion. Mercury General had a net margin of 8.55% and a return on equity of 22.54%. Equities analysts expect that Mercury General Co. will post -0.5 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Mercury General Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 26th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, June 12th will be given a $0.3175 dividend. This represents a $1.27 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.11%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, June 12th. Mercury General's dividend payout ratio is presently 24.61%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

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