Diversified Trust Co Raises Stake in Mercury General Co. (NYSE:MCY)

Diversified Trust Co raised its holdings in shares of Mercury General Co. (NYSE:MCY) by 9.9% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 8,909 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 801 shares during the period. Diversified Trust Co’s holdings in Mercury General were worth $592,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Allworth Financial LP lifted its position in Mercury General by 1,190.5% in the third quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 542 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 500 shares during the last quarter. National Bank of Canada FI bought a new stake in Mercury General during the 2nd quarter valued at $32,000. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its position in Mercury General by 72.0% during the 3rd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,151 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $72,000 after buying an additional 482 shares during the period. Quarry LP grew its holdings in Mercury General by 112.0% in the 2nd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 1,215 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $65,000 after acquiring an additional 642 shares during the last quarter. Finally, CWM LLC increased its position in shares of Mercury General by 115.8% in the third quarter. CWM LLC now owns 1,215 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $77,000 after acquiring an additional 652 shares during the period. 42.39% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Mercury General Trading Down 19.8 %

NYSE MCY opened at $48.68 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.70 billion, a PE ratio of 4.82 and a beta of 0.87. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $71.53 and its 200 day moving average is $64.45. Mercury General Co. has a twelve month low of $37.89 and a twelve month 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.

Mercury General (NYSE:MCY) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 29th. The insurance provider reported $2.54 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.15 by $1.39. The company had revenue of $1.53 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.37 billion. Mercury General had a net margin of 10.18% and a return on equity of 18.04%. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.14 EPS. Research analysts forecast that Mercury General Co. will post 6.35 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Mercury General Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed 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 2.60%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, December 12th. Mercury General’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 12.59%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

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

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, VP Heidi C. Sullivan sold 1,076 shares of Mercury General stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $77.28, for a total transaction of $83,153.28. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 35.50% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.