NewEdge Advisors LLC Buys 6,690 Shares of Mercury General Co. (NYSE:MCY)

NewEdge Advisors LLC grew its stake in Mercury General Co. (NYSE:MCY - Free Report) by 2,230.0% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 6,990 shares of the insurance provider's stock after purchasing an additional 6,690 shares during the period. NewEdge Advisors LLC's holdings in Mercury General were worth $465,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of MCY. Mariner LLC grew its position in Mercury General by 3.2% during the 4th quarter. Mariner LLC now owns 21,043 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $1,399,000 after acquiring an additional 653 shares during the last quarter. Barclays PLC lifted its holdings in Mercury General by 8.1% during the 4th quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 50,349 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $3,348,000 after buying an additional 3,792 shares in the last quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Mercury General by 772.9% during the 4th quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 742 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $49,000 after buying an additional 657 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in Mercury General during the 4th quarter worth $2,595,000. Finally, Capula Management Ltd acquired a new position in Mercury General during the 4th quarter worth $289,000. 42.39% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Mercury General Price Performance

Shares of MCY opened at $54.94 on Tuesday. Mercury General Co. has a 52-week low of $44.19 and a 52-week high of $80.72. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 0.34 and a current ratio of 0.34. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $54.20 and a 200 day simple moving average of $60.87. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.04 billion, a PE ratio of 6.50 and a beta of 0.81.

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

Mercury General Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 27th. Investors of record on Thursday, March 13th were paid a $0.3175 dividend. This represents a $1.27 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.31%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 13th. This is a boost from Mercury General's previous quarterly dividend of $0.32. Mercury General's dividend payout ratio is 15.03%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on the company. StockNews.com downgraded Mercury General from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Raymond James upgraded Mercury General from an "outperform" rating to a "strong-buy" rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $70.00 to $80.00 in a research report 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.

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