Mercury General (NYSE:MCY) Raised to Buy at Wall Street Zen

Key Points

• Mercury General has been upgraded by Wall Street Zen from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating, indicating increased investor confidence.
• The company reported a net margin of 6.76% and a quarterly revenue of $1.48 billion, surpassing analyst expectations.
• Institutional investors have shown significant interest, with hedge funds and other institutions owning 42.39% of the company's stock after recent acquisitions.

Mercury General (NYSE:MCY - Get Free Report) was upgraded by stock analysts at Wall Street Zen from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report issued on Saturday.

Mercury General Trading Up 5.2%

NYSE:MCY traded up $3.54 on Friday, hitting $71.58. 305,458 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 536,433. The stock has a market cap of $3.96 billion, a PE ratio of 10.17 and a beta of 0.96. 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 fifty day moving average of $66.06 and a 200-day moving average of $58.49. Mercury General has a fifty-two week low of $44.19 and a fifty-two week high of $80.72.

Mercury General (NYSE:MCY - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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 company had revenue of $1.48 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.45 billion. As a group, equities analysts expect that Mercury General will post -0.5 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of Mercury General

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC bought a new stake in Mercury General during the 1st quarter valued at $384,000. Convergence Financial LLC bought a new stake in Mercury General during the 1st quarter valued at $232,000. Point72 Asset Management L.P. raised its stake in Mercury General by 5.2% during the 4th quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. now owns 218,312 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $14,513,000 after acquiring an additional 10,812 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its position in shares of Mercury General by 32.6% during the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 22,964 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $1,527,000 after purchasing an additional 5,652 shares during the period. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Mercury General during the 4th quarter valued at $2,595,000. Institutional investors own 42.39% of the company's stock.

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.