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

Shares of Mercury General Corporation (NYSE:MCY) crossed above its 200-day moving average during trading on Monday . The stock has a 200-day moving average of $83.84 and traded as high as $95.61. Mercury General shares last traded at $92.4150, with a volume of 230,226 shares changing hands.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Mercury General in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. Zacks Research lowered shares of Mercury General from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, January 9th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has assigned a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Mercury General currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $100.00.

Mercury General Trading Down 2.9%

The firm has a market cap of $5.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.65 and a beta of 0.94. The company has a quick ratio of 0.45, a current ratio of 0.45 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $90.99 and a 200-day moving average price of $83.84.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Mercury General

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its holdings in Mercury General by 0.4% in the 3rd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,079,735 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $176,311,000 after buying an additional 9,278 shares in the last quarter. Rubric Capital Management LP increased its position in shares of Mercury General by 12.8% during the second quarter. Rubric Capital Management LP now owns 2,054,504 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $138,350,000 after acquiring an additional 232,721 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Mercury General by 1.9% during the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 666,783 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $44,907,000 after acquiring an additional 12,728 shares during the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Mercury General by 22.9% in the third quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 578,671 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $49,060,000 after acquiring an additional 107,766 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Westwood Holdings Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Mercury General by 14.0% in the second quarter. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. now owns 560,670 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $37,756,000 after purchasing an additional 68,983 shares during the last quarter. 42.39% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.