Mercury General (NYSE:MCY) Shares Pass Above 200-Day Moving Average – Should You Sell?

Mercury General Corporation (NYSE:MCY) shares crossed above its 200-day moving average during trading on Friday . The stock has a 200-day moving average of $79.44 and traded as high as $94.55. Mercury General shares last traded at $91.8910, with a volume of 192,207 shares changing hands.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on MCY shares. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Mercury General in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Zacks Research raised shares of Mercury General from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 11th. Finally, Raymond James Financial restated a “strong-buy” rating and set a $100.00 price target (up from $90.00) on shares of Mercury General in a research report on Monday, September 22nd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and one has assigned a Buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Strong Buy” and a consensus target price of $100.00.

Mercury General Trading Down 2.3%

The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $89.12 and its 200 day simple moving average is $79.55. The firm has a market cap of $5.09 billion, a PE ratio of 11.59 and a beta of 0.93. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a quick ratio of 0.45 and a current ratio of 0.45.

Mercury General (NYSE:MCY) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, November 4th. The insurance provider reported $3.86 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.15 by $1.71. Mercury General had a net margin of 7.55% and a return on equity of 19.53%. The firm had revenue of $1.58 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.49 billion. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Mercury General Corporation will post -0.5 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Mercury General Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, December 24th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, December 10th were paid a dividend of $0.3175 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, December 10th. This represents a $1.27 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.4%. Mercury General’s payout ratio is 16.02%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Mercury General

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd bought a new position in Mercury General during the third quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Jones Financial Companies Lllp boosted its stake in shares of Mercury General by 236.0% in the 3rd quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 457 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 321 shares in the last quarter. Caitlin John LLC bought a new position in shares of Mercury General during the 3rd quarter valued at $41,000. Allworth Financial LP raised its position in Mercury General by 18.6% in the 3rd quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 753 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $64,000 after purchasing an additional 118 shares during the period. Finally, State of Wyoming bought a new stake in Mercury General in the third quarter worth $72,000. 42.39% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Mercury General

Mercury General Corporation is a holding company headquartered in Los Angeles, California, that underwrites and markets property and casualty insurance products through its principal subsidiary, Mercury Insurance Company. Established in 1961, the company has built a reputation for offering a broad range of personal and commercial lines, with a focus on automobile coverage. Mercury General operates in key U.S. markets, deploying a mix of independent agents and direct distribution channels to serve policyholders.

The company’s product portfolio includes personal automobile insurance, homeowners and renters policies, as well as commercial automobile, business liability and umbrella insurance.