Mercury General (NYSE:MCY) Downgraded by StockNews.com to Buy

Mercury General (NYSE:MCY) was downgraded by stock analysts at StockNews.com from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report released on Wednesday.

Mercury General Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:MCY opened at $52.67 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.30, a current ratio of 0.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42. The stock has a market cap of $2.92 billion, a PE ratio of 30.27 and a beta of 0.80. The company’s fifty day moving average is $49.10 and its 200 day moving average is $40.65. Mercury General has a 52 week low of $26.15 and a 52 week high of $54.59.

Mercury General (NYSE:MCY) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 13th. The insurance provider reported $1.15 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.05 by $1.10. Mercury General had a return on equity of 1.17% and a net margin of 2.08%. The firm had revenue of $1.21 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.16 billion. Research analysts anticipate that Mercury General will post 2.9 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in MCY. Quarry LP raised its holdings in Mercury General by 35.6% during the 4th quarter. Quarry LP now owns 876 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 230 shares during the last quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors raised its stake in shares of Mercury General by 23.8% during the first quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 1,244 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $68,000 after acquiring an additional 239 shares during the last quarter. Panagora Asset Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Mercury General by 3.4% during the first quarter. Panagora Asset Management Inc. now owns 7,808 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $429,000 after acquiring an additional 254 shares during the last quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Mercury General by 1.7% during the third quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 17,314 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $492,000 after purchasing an additional 294 shares during the period. Finally, The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company grew its stake in shares of Mercury General by 3.1% in the second quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 11,762 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $356,000 after purchasing an additional 349 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 42.39% of the company’s stock.

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.