Westwood Holdings Group Inc. Invests $27.49 Million in Mercury General Corporation (NYSE:MCY)

Key Points

• Westwood Holdings Group Inc. has invested approximately $27.49 million in Mercury General Corporation, acquiring 491,687 shares, which represents 0.89% of the company's stock.
• Analysts from Raymond James Financial have upgraded Mercury General's rating to "strong-buy" with a target price increase to $90.00.
• Mercury General's recent quarterly earnings showed an EPS of $2.67, surpassing expectations, and the company has announced a upcoming quarterly dividend of $0.3175 per share, yielding 1.8% annually.

Westwood Holdings Group Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Mercury General Corporation (NYSE:MCY - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 491,687 shares of the insurance provider's stock, valued at approximately $27,485,000. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. owned approximately 0.89% of Mercury General as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Russell Investments Group Ltd. grew its stake in shares of Mercury General by 0.3% during the 4th quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 75,400 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $5,013,000 after acquiring an additional 224 shares in the last quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Mercury General by 6.8% in the fourth quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 5,542 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $368,000 after buying an additional 353 shares in the last quarter. NDVR Inc. grew its stake in shares of Mercury General by 11.2% in the fourth quarter. NDVR Inc. now owns 3,695 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $246,000 after buying an additional 371 shares in the last quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA grew its stake in shares of Mercury General by 13.2% in the fourth quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA now owns 3,816 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $254,000 after buying an additional 444 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Federated Hermes Inc. grew its stake in shares of Mercury General by 23.5% in the fourth quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 2,453 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $163,000 after buying an additional 466 shares in the last quarter. 42.39% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Mercury General Stock Performance

Mercury General stock traded up $0.50 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $70.84. 266,290 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 314,228. Mercury General Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $44.19 and a fifty-two week high of $80.72. The stock has a market cap of $3.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.06 and a beta of 0.96. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $66.98 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $59.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 0.43 and a quick ratio of 0.43.

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

Mercury General Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 25th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, September 11th will be given 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 1.8%. Mercury General's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 18.04%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently weighed in on MCY. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Mercury General from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 2nd. Raymond James Financial reissued a "strong-buy" rating and issued a $90.00 target price (up from $80.00) on shares of Mercury General in a research note on Monday, August 4th.

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.