Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund Reduces Holdings in Mercury General Corporation $MCY

Key Points

• Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund cut its Mercury General stake by 53.3% in the first quarter, selling 29,502 shares and retaining 25,898 shares valued at approximately $2.28 million.
• Other institutional investors generally increased their positions, including Royal Bank of Canada, Millennium Management and EverSource Wealth Advisors. Hedge funds and institutions collectively own 42.39% of Mercury General.
• Mercury General reported quarterly earnings of $3.50 per share, exceeding estimates by $1.35, while revenue reached $1.54 billion. Analysts maintain an average “Buy” rating, with a $100 target price, compared with the stock’s recent price of $107.21.

Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund decreased its stake in shares of Mercury General Corporation (NYSE:MCY - Free Report) by 53.3% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 25,898 shares of the insurance provider's stock after selling 29,502 shares during the period. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund's holdings in Mercury General were worth $2,283,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of MCY. Royal Bank of Canada raised its stake in Mercury General by 58.8% in the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 54,312 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $3,036,000 after buying an additional 20,115 shares in the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. boosted its position in Mercury General by 4.6% during the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 15,935 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $891,000 after acquiring an additional 702 shares in the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Mercury General by 8.5% during the 1st quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 111,327 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $6,223,000 after acquiring an additional 8,742 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC raised its position in shares of Mercury General by 1.7% in the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 10,923 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $611,000 after acquiring an additional 185 shares in the last quarter. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Mercury General by 194.2% in the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,209 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $81,000 after acquiring an additional 798 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 42.39% of the company's stock.

Mercury General Stock Performance

Shares of MCY opened at $107.21 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.44, a current ratio of 0.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22. The stock has a market cap of $5.94 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.07 and a beta of 0.89. The business's 50 day moving average price is $104.58 and its 200-day moving average price is $96.40. Mercury General Corporation has a 52 week low of $66.57 and a 52 week high of $113.06.

Mercury General (NYSE:MCY - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 5th. The insurance provider reported $3.50 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.15 by $1.35. The company had revenue of $1.54 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.46 billion. Mercury General had a return on equity of 32.94% and a net margin of 13.68%. Equities research analysts anticipate that Mercury General Corporation will post 11.5 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on MCY shares. Zacks Research lowered Mercury General from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, July 17th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Mercury General in a report on Thursday, June 4th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised Mercury General from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, July 4th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has issued a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Mercury General currently has an average rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $100.00.

Mercury General Company Profile

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.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding MCY? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Mercury General Corporation (NYSE:MCY - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.