American Century Companies Inc. Has $22.67 Million Stake in Mercury General Corporation $MCY

Key Points

• American Century Companies Inc. increased its stake in Mercury General Corporation by 32.9%, acquiring over 100,000 shares and holding approximately 0.73% of the company worth $22.67 million.
• Mercury General announced a quarterly dividend of $0.3175 per share, yielding 1.7%, to be paid on September 25th to shareholders of record on September 11th.
• Wall Street analysts have a consensus rating of "Strong Buy" for Mercury General, with a target price increased to $90.00.

American Century Companies Inc. raised its position in Mercury General Corporation (NYSE:MCY - Free Report) by 32.9% during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 405,464 shares of the insurance provider's stock after buying an additional 100,472 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. owned about 0.73% of Mercury General worth $22,665,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC bought a new position in Mercury General in the 1st quarter valued at $1,688,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its position in Mercury General by 2.4% in the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,105,976 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $117,723,000 after buying an additional 49,155 shares during the last quarter. Fox Run Management L.L.C. bought a new position in Mercury General in the 1st quarter valued at $1,110,000. Trajan Wealth LLC boosted its position in Mercury General by 14.7% in the 1st quarter. Trajan Wealth LLC now owns 3,877 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $217,000 after buying an additional 498 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Public Sector Pension Investment Board boosted its position in Mercury General by 27.3% in the 1st quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 84,299 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $4,712,000 after buying an additional 18,088 shares during the last quarter. 42.39% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Mercury General Trading Down 0.4%

Shares of NYSE:MCY traded down $0.33 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $77.30. The company had a trading volume of 56,545 shares, compared to its average volume of 504,165. Mercury General Corporation has a 12 month low of $44.19 and a 12 month high of $80.72. The company has a current ratio of 0.43, a quick ratio of 0.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. The stock has a market cap of $4.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.97 and a beta of 0.96. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $69.64 and a 200 day simple moving average of $61.38.

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

Mercury General Announces Dividend

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

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

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.