Western Standard LLC Makes New Investment in Mercury General Co. (NYSE:MCY)

Western Standard LLC acquired a new stake in Mercury General Co. (NYSE:MCY - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 147,643 shares of the insurance provider's stock, valued at approximately $9,815,000. Mercury General comprises approximately 6.5% of Western Standard LLC's holdings, making the stock its 4th largest position. Western Standard LLC owned approximately 0.27% of Mercury General at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MCY. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Mercury General by 68.9% during the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,944 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $122,000 after buying an additional 793 shares during the last quarter. Precision Wealth Strategies LLC bought a new position in Mercury General in the 4th quarter valued at $424,000. Prudential Financial Inc. boosted its position in shares of Mercury General by 27.9% in the 4th quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. now owns 79,677 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $5,297,000 after purchasing an additional 17,370 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its holdings in Mercury General by 32.6% in the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 22,964 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $1,527,000 after purchasing an additional 5,652 shares during the period. Finally, Barclays PLC raised its stake in shares of Mercury General by 319.9% in the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 46,557 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $2,931,000 after purchasing an additional 35,470 shares during the period. 42.39% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Mercury General Stock Down 1.1%

Mercury General stock opened at $61.07 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $3.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.23 and a beta of 0.90. The company has a current ratio of 0.34, a quick ratio of 0.34 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $55.75 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $60.00. 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 earnings results on Tuesday, May 6th. The insurance provider reported ($2.29) EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of ($4.00) by $1.71. Mercury General had a return on equity of 22.54% and a net margin of 8.55%. The firm had revenue of $1.31 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.36 billion. Equities analysts predict that Mercury General Co. will post -0.5 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Mercury General Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 26th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, June 12th will be issued a $0.3175 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, June 12th. This represents a $1.27 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.08%. Mercury General's payout ratio is currently 24.61%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MCY has been the subject of several research reports. StockNews.com raised Mercury General from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, May 12th. Raymond James upgraded Mercury General from an "outperform" rating to a "strong-buy" rating and increased their target price for the stock from $70.00 to $80.00 in a report on Wednesday, February 12th.

About Mercury General

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.

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