Vanguard Group Inc. Has $192.26 Million Stake in Mercury General Corporation $MCY

Key Points

• Vanguard Group Inc. reduced its stake in Mercury General Corporation by 6.3%, owning approximately 3.44 million shares, valued at around $192 million at the end of the last quarter.
• Mercury General reported earnings of $2.67 per share, exceeding analysts' expectations, and had a revenue of $1.48 billion for the quarter.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.3175 per share, resulting in an annualized dividend yield of 1.7%.

Vanguard Group Inc. lessened its position in Mercury General Corporation (NYSE:MCY - Free Report) by 6.3% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 3,439,432 shares of the insurance provider's stock after selling 230,582 shares during the quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. owned approximately 6.21% of Mercury General worth $192,264,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in MCY. Wells Fargo & Company MN lifted its position in shares of Mercury General by 123.0% in the 4th quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 35,788 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $2,379,000 after acquiring an additional 19,743 shares in the last quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Mercury General by 6.8% in the 4th quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 5,542 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $368,000 after acquiring an additional 353 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Mercury General in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $2,595,000. Sterling Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Mercury General by 772.9% in the 4th 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. Finally, Barclays PLC lifted its position in shares of Mercury General by 8.1% in the 4th quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 50,349 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $3,348,000 after acquiring an additional 3,792 shares in 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 issued reports on MCY. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Mercury General from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, August 2nd. Raymond James Financial reiterated a "strong-buy" rating and issued a $90.00 target price (up previously from $80.00) on shares of Mercury General in a research report on Monday, August 4th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Strong Buy" and a consensus price target of $90.00.

Mercury General Stock Up 0.7%

Shares of Mercury General stock traded up $0.5250 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $76.4950. 242,949 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 289,517. The company has a market cap of $4.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.87 and a beta of 0.96. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $68.85 and its 200 day simple moving average is $60.83. 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 released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The insurance provider reported $2.67 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.10) by $2.77. The business had revenue of $1.48 billion for 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%. Equities analysts expect that Mercury General Corporation will post -0.5 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Mercury General Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 25th. Stockholders 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 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.7%. Mercury General's dividend payout ratio (DPR) 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.