Ieq Capital LLC Acquires New Position in Mercury General Co. (NYSE:MCY)

Ieq Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of Mercury General Co. (NYSE:MCY) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 17,430 shares of the insurance provider’s stock, valued at approximately $1,159,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Allworth Financial LP boosted its holdings in Mercury General by 1,190.5% during the third quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 542 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $34,000 after buying an additional 500 shares during the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its stake in Mercury General by 72.0% during the 3rd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,151 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $72,000 after acquiring an additional 482 shares during the last quarter. Quest Partners LLC grew its holdings in Mercury General by 12,340.0% during the third quarter. Quest Partners LLC now owns 1,244 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $78,000 after purchasing an additional 1,234 shares during the period. KBC Group NV increased its stake in Mercury General by 58.6% in the fourth quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 1,299 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $86,000 after purchasing an additional 480 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Farther Finance Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Mercury General by 1,753.0% in the third quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 2,168 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $137,000 after purchasing an additional 2,051 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 42.39% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Mercury General

In related news, VP Heidi C. Sullivan sold 1,076 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $77.28, for a total value of $83,153.28. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 35.50% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Mercury General Price Performance

Shares of NYSE MCY opened at $53.74 on Tuesday. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $56.58 and a 200 day moving average price of $63.46. The firm has a market cap of $2.98 billion, a PE ratio of 6.36 and a beta of 0.85. The company has a current ratio of 0.34, a quick ratio of 0.34 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. Mercury General Co. has a 1-year low of $44.19 and a 1-year high of $80.72.

Mercury General (NYSE:MCY) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 11th. The insurance provider reported $2.78 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.94 by $0.84. Mercury General had a return on equity of 22.54% and a net margin of 8.55%. Research analysts predict that Mercury General Co. will post -0.5 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Mercury General Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 27th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 13th will be issued a $0.3175 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, March 13th. This is an increase from Mercury General’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.32. This represents a $1.27 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.36%. Mercury General’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 15.03%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on MCY. StockNews.com lowered shares of Mercury General from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Raymond James raised 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 research note on Wednesday, February 12th.

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.