Renaissance Technologies LLC Sells 57,800 Shares of Mercury General Corporation $MCY

Renaissance Technologies LLC lowered its position in shares of Mercury General Corporation (NYSE:MCY) by 6.6% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 823,582 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 57,800 shares during the quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC’s holdings in Mercury General were worth $72,599,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Ritholtz Wealth Management grew its holdings in shares of Mercury General by 579.7% in the 4th quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management now owns 25,523 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $2,401,000 after buying an additional 21,768 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. raised its stake in Mercury General by 75.8% during the 4th quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 65,124 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $6,126,000 after buying an additional 28,071 shares during the period. Legato Capital Management LLC bought a new position in Mercury General during the fourth quarter worth about $538,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Mercury General by 40.5% during the first quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 178,064 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $15,696,000 after acquiring an additional 51,336 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Candriam S.C.A. acquired a new position in Mercury General in the first quarter valued at about $5,886,000. Institutional investors own 42.39% of the company’s stock.

Mercury General Price Performance

Shares of NYSE MCY opened at $106.97 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $5.92 billion, a PE ratio of 7.05 and a beta of 0.89. The company has a current ratio of 0.44, a quick ratio of 0.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22. Mercury General Corporation has a 1-year low of $66.57 and a 1-year high of $113.06. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $103.94 and a 200 day moving average price of $95.80.

Mercury General (NYSE:MCY) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The insurance provider reported $3.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.15 by $1.35. The firm had revenue of $1.54 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.46 billion. Mercury General had a return on equity of 32.94% and a net margin of 13.68%. Research analysts predict that Mercury General Corporation will post 11.5 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Mercury General Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 25th. Investors of record on Thursday, June 11th were given a $0.3175 dividend. This represents a $1.27 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, June 11th. Mercury General’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 8.37%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on MCY shares. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Mercury General in a report on Thursday, June 4th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Mercury General from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Saturday, July 4th. Finally, Zacks Research lowered Mercury General from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, July 17th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has given a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $100.00.

Mercury General Profile

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.