Mercury General Co. (NYSE:MCY) Shares Sold by Hennessy Advisors Inc.

Hennessy Advisors Inc. lowered its position in shares of Mercury General Co. (NYSE:MCY - Free Report) by 10.2% during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 172,600 shares of the insurance provider's stock after selling 19,700 shares during the period. Hennessy Advisors Inc. owned about 0.31% of Mercury General worth $9,648,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in MCY. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Mercury General by 145.1% during the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 554 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $37,000 after buying an additional 328 shares during the last quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. purchased a new position in shares of Mercury General during the fourth quarter worth about $44,000. Sterling Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Mercury General by 772.9% during the fourth quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 742 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $49,000 after buying an additional 657 shares during the last quarter. Millstone Evans Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Mercury General during the fourth quarter worth about $60,000. Finally, Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC purchased a new position in shares of Mercury General during the fourth quarter worth about $68,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 42.39% of the company's stock.

Mercury General Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:MCY traded down $0.72 during trading on Friday, hitting $64.49. 191,000 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 413,965. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $58.77 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $58.68. The company has a market cap of $3.57 billion, a PE ratio of 7.63 and a beta of 0.96. 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 12-month low of $44.19 and a 12-month high of $80.72.

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

Mercury General Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 26th. Investors of record on Thursday, June 12th will be paid a $0.3175 dividend. This represents a $1.27 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.97%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, June 12th. Mercury General's payout ratio is currently 24.61%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, Wall Street Zen raised Mercury General from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, May 12th.

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.