Head-To-Head Review: Bowhead Specialty (NYSE:BOW) vs. Mercury General (NYSE:MCY)

Bowhead Specialty (NYSE:BOW) and Mercury General (NYSE:MCY) are both finance companies, but which is the superior stock? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their dividends, earnings, risk, valuation, analyst recommendations, profitability and institutional ownership.

Profitability

This table compares Bowhead Specialty and Mercury General’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Bowhead Specialty	N/A	N/A	N/A
Mercury General	6.36%	14.91%	3.13%

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares Bowhead Specialty and Mercury General”s top-line revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Bowhead Specialty	$348.44 million	2.64	N/A	N/A	N/A
Mercury General	$5.02 billion	0.73	$96.34 million	$3.89	16.92

Mercury General has higher revenue and earnings than Bowhead Specialty.

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of recent ratings and price targets for Bowhead Specialty and Mercury General, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Bowhead Specialty	0	3	2	0	2.40
Mercury General	0	0	0	0	N/A

Bowhead Specialty currently has a consensus target price of $29.20, indicating a potential upside of 0.21%. Given Bowhead Specialty’s higher possible upside, equities research analysts plainly believe Bowhead Specialty is more favorable than Mercury General.

Institutional and Insider Ownership

42.4% of Mercury General shares are owned by institutional investors. 35.5% of Mercury General shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, large money managers and hedge funds believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Summary

Mercury General beats Bowhead Specialty on 6 of the 9 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Bowhead Specialty

Bowhead Specialty Holdings Inc. provides specialty property and casualty insurance products in the United States. It underwrites casualty insurance solutions for risks in the construction, distribution, heavy manufacturing, real estate, and hospitality segments; professional liability insurance solutions for financial institutions, private and public directors and officers liability insurance, errors and omissions liability insurance, and cyber segments; and healthcare solutions for hospitals, senior care providers, managed care organizations, miscellaneous medical facilities, and healthcare management liability segments. The company distributes its products through distribution partners in wholesale and retail markets. Bowhead Specialty Holdings Inc. was formerly known as Bowhead Holdings Inc. and changed its name to Bowhead Specialty Holdings Inc. in March 2024. The company was founded in 2020 and is based in New York, New York. Bowhead Specialty Holdings Inc. operates as a subsidiary of Bowhead Insurance Holdings LP.

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. The company sells its policies through a network of independent agents, insurance agencies, as well as directly through internet sales portals in Arizona, California, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Nevada, New Jersey, New York, Oklahoma, Texas, and Virginia. Mercury General Corporation was founded in 1961 and is headquartered in Los Angeles, California.