Mercury General Corporation $MCY Shares Bought by Intech Investment Management LLC

Key Points

• Intech Investment Management LLC increased its stake in Mercury General Corporation by 108.2% in the first quarter, now holding 58,198 shares valued at approximately $3,253,000.
• Mercury General recently reported earnings of $2.67 EPS for the quarter, significantly exceeding analysts' expectations, and announced a quarterly dividend of $0.3175 per share.
• Several analysts upgraded their ratings for Mercury General, with Raymond James issuing a strong-buy rating and raising the price target to $90.00, reflecting a positive outlook on the stock.

Intech Investment Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Mercury General Corporation (NYSE:MCY - Free Report) by 108.2% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 58,198 shares of the insurance provider's stock after buying an additional 30,244 shares during the period. Intech Investment Management LLC owned about 0.11% of Mercury General worth $3,253,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MCY. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC acquired a new position in Mercury General during the first quarter worth about $384,000. Convergence Financial LLC acquired a new position in Mercury General during the first quarter worth about $232,000. Point72 Asset Management L.P. raised its position in Mercury General by 5.2% during the fourth quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. now owns 218,312 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $14,513,000 after acquiring an additional 10,812 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its position in Mercury General by 2.4% during the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,105,976 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $117,723,000 after acquiring an additional 49,155 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Baird Financial Group Inc. raised its position in Mercury General by 12.7% during the first quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. now owns 168,626 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $9,426,000 after acquiring an additional 18,948 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 42.39% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on MCY. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Mercury General from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, August 2nd. Raymond James Financial restated a "strong-buy" rating and issued a $90.00 target price (up from $80.00) on shares of Mercury General in a report on Monday, August 4th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat, Mercury General presently has an average rating of "Strong Buy" and a consensus target price of $90.00.

Mercury General Stock Down 1.1%

Shares of MCY stock traded down $0.88 on Tuesday, hitting $77.60. The stock had a trading volume of 214,508 shares, compared to its average volume of 483,436. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.30 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.02 and a beta of 0.98. The stock's 50 day moving average is $72.82 and its 200-day moving average is $63.72. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 0.43 and a current ratio of 0.43. Mercury General Corporation has a 52-week low of $44.19 and a 52-week high of $80.72.

Mercury General (NYSE:MCY - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The insurance provider reported $2.67 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.10) by $2.77. The business had revenue of $1.48 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.45 billion. Mercury General had a net margin of 6.76% and a return on equity of 16.61%. As a group, research analysts expect that Mercury General Corporation will post -0.5 earnings per share for the current year.

Mercury General Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 25th. Investors of record on Thursday, September 11th will be issued a $0.3175 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, September 11th. This represents a $1.27 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.6%. Mercury General's dividend payout ratio is currently 18.04%.

Mercury General 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.