Mercury General (NYSE:MCY) Reaches New 52-Week High – Time to Buy?

Mercury General Corporation (NYSE:MCY) hit a new 52-week high on Monday . The company traded as high as $104.32 and last traded at $104.3270, with a volume of 20549 shares. The stock had previously closed at $102.67.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MCY has been the subject of several recent research reports. Zacks Research upgraded Mercury General from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 26th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Mercury General in a report on Thursday, June 4th. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Mercury General from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, June 13th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and one has assigned a Buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Mercury General currently has an average rating of “Strong Buy” and a consensus target price of $100.00.

Mercury General Trading Up 1.4%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22, a current ratio of 0.44 and a quick ratio of 0.44. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $98.52 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $93.18. The company has a market capitalization of $5.77 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.87 and a beta of 0.91.

Mercury General (NYSE:MCY) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The insurance provider reported $3.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.15 by $1.35. The business had revenue of $1.54 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.46 billion. Mercury General had a return on equity of 32.94% and a net margin of 13.68%. Research analysts predict that Mercury General Corporation will post 11.38 earnings per share for the current year.

Mercury General Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 25th. Investors of record on Thursday, June 11th will be given a $0.3175 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, June 11th. This represents a $1.27 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.2%. Mercury General’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 8.37%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Mercury General

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of MCY. Royal Bank of Canada increased its holdings in Mercury General by 58.8% in the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 54,312 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $3,036,000 after buying an additional 20,115 shares during the period. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of Mercury General by 4.6% during the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 15,935 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $891,000 after acquiring an additional 702 shares during the period. Millennium Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Mercury General by 8.5% during the 1st quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 111,327 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $6,223,000 after acquiring an additional 8,742 shares in the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC boosted its position in shares of Mercury General by 1.7% during the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 10,923 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $611,000 after acquiring an additional 185 shares in the last quarter. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in Mercury General by 194.2% in the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,209 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $81,000 after acquiring an additional 798 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 42.39% of the company’s stock.

About Mercury General

Mercury General Corporation is a holding company headquartered in Los Angeles, California, that underwrites and markets property and casualty insurance products through its principal subsidiary, Mercury Insurance Company. Established in 1961, the company has built a reputation for offering a broad range of personal and commercial lines, with a focus on automobile coverage. Mercury General operates in key U.S. markets, deploying a mix of independent agents and direct distribution channels to serve policyholders.

The company’s product portfolio includes personal automobile insurance, homeowners and renters policies, as well as commercial automobile, business liability and umbrella insurance.