Mercury General Q1 Profit Plunges - Quick Facts

(RTTNews) - Automobile insurer Mercury General Corp. (MCY) reported that net income for the second quarter plunged to $9.64 million or $0.17 per share from $94.96 million or $1.73 per share in the prior-year quarter.

The company also reported a net realized investment loss of $0.47 per share, compared to net realized investment gains of $0.90 per share last year.

Excluding net realized investment loss and gains, operating income for the quarter was $35.21 million or $0.64 per share, compared to $45.44 million or $0.83 per share in the year-ago quarter.

Total revenues for the quarter declined to $726.17 million from $807.02 million in the same quarter last year.

Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters expected the company to report earnings of $0.69 per share on revenues of $753.00 million for the quarter. Analysts' estimates typically exclude special items.

Net premiums written grew 5 percent to $733.55 million from last year's $698.76 million.

The Board of Directors also declared a quarterly dividend of $0.6175 per share, payable on September 24 to shareholders of record on September 10, 2015.