XTX Topco Ltd Makes New Investment in Mercury General Co. (NYSE:MCY)

XTX Topco Ltd acquired a new stake in Mercury General Co. (NYSE:MCY - Free Report) in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor acquired 11,576 shares of the insurance provider's stock, valued at approximately $729,000.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Zacks Investment Management raised its position in shares of Mercury General by 11.1% in the 3rd quarter. Zacks Investment Management now owns 76,590 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $4,824,000 after acquiring an additional 7,648 shares in the last quarter. Jane Street Group LLC increased its position in Mercury General by 60.4% during the 3rd quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 72,573 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $4,571,000 after buying an additional 27,327 shares in the last quarter. Phase 2 Partners LLC raised its stake in Mercury General by 142.1% during the third quarter. Phase 2 Partners LLC now owns 273,955 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $17,254,000 after buying an additional 160,808 shares during the last quarter. Philadelphia Financial Management of San Francisco LLC bought a new stake in Mercury General in the third quarter worth $8,243,000. Finally, Point72 Asset Management L.P. purchased a new stake in shares of Mercury General in the third quarter worth $13,068,000. 42.39% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In related news, VP Heidi C. Sullivan sold 1,076 shares of Mercury General stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $77.28, for a total value of $83,153.28. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 35.50% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, StockNews.com raised Mercury General from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday.

Mercury General Stock Down 1.3 %

Shares of MCY traded down $0.93 on Thursday, hitting $71.69. 147,268 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 237,096. The company has a market capitalization of $3.97 billion, a PE ratio of 7.23 and a beta of 0.84. Mercury General Co. has a one year low of $36.96 and a one year high of $80.72. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31, a quick ratio of 0.33 and a current ratio of 0.33. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $71.11 and a 200 day simple moving average of $62.52.

Mercury General (NYSE:MCY - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The insurance provider reported $2.54 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.15 by $1.39. Mercury General had a return on equity of 18.04% and a net margin of 10.18%. The firm had revenue of $1.53 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.37 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.14 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Mercury General Co. will post 6.35 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Mercury General Cuts Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 26th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, December 12th will be paid a $0.317 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, December 12th. This represents a $1.27 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.77%. Mercury General's dividend payout ratio is presently 12.59%.

Mercury General Company 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.