Mercury General Co. (NYSE:MCY) Shares Sold by Wittenberg Investment Management Inc.

Wittenberg Investment Management Inc. decreased its holdings in Mercury General Co. (NYSE:MCY) by 4.7% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 8,071 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 400 shares during the quarter. Wittenberg Investment Management Inc.’s holdings in Mercury General were worth $508,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of MCY. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Mercury General by 1.5% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 3,256,765 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $168,049,000 after purchasing an additional 48,508 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its stake in shares of Mercury General by 4.7% in the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,999,235 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $106,237,000 after buying an additional 88,954 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its holdings in Mercury General by 3.8% in the second quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 310,333 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $16,491,000 after acquiring an additional 11,242 shares in the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. boosted its stake in Mercury General by 607.5% during the 3rd quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 214,427 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $13,505,000 after acquiring an additional 184,121 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Hennessy Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in Mercury General during the 2nd quarter worth $8,492,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 42.39% of the company’s stock.

Mercury General Price Performance

MCY opened at $77.27 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31, a quick ratio of 0.33 and a current ratio of 0.33. Mercury General Co. has a 1-year low of $36.37 and a 1-year high of $77.48. The company has a 50-day moving average of $67.27 and a 200-day moving average of $60.83. The company has a market capitalization of $4.28 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.66 and a beta of 0.81.

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

Mercury General Cuts Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 26th. Investors of record on Thursday, December 12th will be paid a dividend of $0.317 per share. This represents a $1.27 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.64%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, December 12th. Mercury General’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 12.59%.

Mercury General 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.