Mercury General Co. (NYSE:MCY) Shares Acquired by Hennessy Advisors Inc.

Hennessy Advisors Inc. grew its position in shares of Mercury General Co. (NYSE:MCY) by 6.8% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 192,300 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after buying an additional 12,300 shares during the period. Hennessy Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Mercury General were worth $12,784,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in MCY. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in Mercury General by 3.3% in the fourth quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 7,496 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $498,000 after buying an additional 238 shares in the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company grew its position in shares of Mercury General by 2.6% during the 2nd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 15,660 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $832,000 after acquiring an additional 396 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC increased its stake in shares of Mercury General by 4.6% in the 3rd quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 10,287 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $648,000 after purchasing an additional 454 shares in the last quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets raised its holdings in Mercury General by 1.0% in the 3rd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 47,882 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $3,016,000 after purchasing an additional 481 shares during the period. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. boosted its position in Mercury General by 72.0% during the third quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,151 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $72,000 after purchasing an additional 482 shares in the last quarter. 42.39% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, StockNews.com cut Mercury General from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 26th.

Mercury General Stock Performance

MCY opened at $52.09 on Friday. Mercury General Co. has a 52-week low of $37.89 and a 52-week high of $80.72. The company has a quick ratio of 0.33, a current ratio of 0.33 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $69.62 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $64.37. The company has a market cap of $2.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 5.16 and a beta of 0.87.

Mercury General (NYSE:MCY) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The insurance provider reported $2.54 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.15 by $1.39. Mercury General had a return on equity of 18.04% and a net margin of 10.18%. The business had revenue of $1.53 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.37 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.14 earnings per share. Equities analysts anticipate that Mercury General Co. will post 5.05 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Mercury General Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 26th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, December 12th were paid a $0.317 dividend. This represents a $1.27 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.43%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, December 12th. Mercury General’s dividend payout ratio is currently 12.59%.

Insider Transactions at Mercury General

In other Mercury General news, VP Heidi C. Sullivan sold 1,076 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 35.50% of the company’s stock.

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.