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Mercury General (Mercury General) Beneish M-Score : -2.76 (As of Apr. 26, 2024)


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What is Mercury General Beneish M-Score?

Note: Financial institutions were excluded from the sample in Beneish paper when calculating Beneish M-Score. Thus, the prediction might not fit banks and insurance companies.

The zones of discrimination for M-Score is as such:

An M-Score of equal or less than -1.78 suggests that the company is unlikely to be a manipulator.
An M-Score of greater than -1.78 signals that the company is likely to be a manipulator.

Good Sign:

Beneish M-Score -2.76 no higher than -1.78, which implies that the company is unlikely to be a manipulator.

The historical rank and industry rank for Mercury General's Beneish M-Score or its related term are showing as below:

MCY' s Beneish M-Score Range Over the Past 10 Years
Min: -3.16   Med: -2.63   Max: -2.47
Current: -2.76

During the past 13 years, the highest Beneish M-Score of Mercury General was -2.47. The lowest was -3.16. And the median was -2.63.


Mercury General Beneish M-Score Calculation

The M-score was created by Professor Messod Beneish. Instead of measuring the bankruptcy risk (Altman Z-Score) or business trend (Piotroski F-Score), M-score can be used to detect the risk of earnings manipulation. This is the original research paper on M-score.

The M-Score Variables:

The M-score of Mercury General for today is based on a combination of the following eight different indices:

M=-4.84+0.92 * DSRI+0.528 * GMI+0.404 * AQI+0.892 * SGI+0.115 * DEPI
=-4.84+0.92 * 0.7927+0.528 * 1+0.404 * 0.9683+0.892 * 1.2708+0.115 * 0.9899
-0.172 * SGAI+4.679 * TATA-0.327 * LVGI
-0.172 * 1+4.679 * -0.052969-0.327 * 1.2237
=-2.76

* For Operating Data section: All numbers are indicated by the unit behind each term and all currency related amount are in USD.
* For other sections: All numbers are in millions except for per share data, ratio, and percentage. All currency related amount are indicated in the company's associated stock exchange currency.

This Year (Dec23) TTM:Last Year (Dec22) TTM:
Total Receivables was $663 Mil.
Revenue was $4,630 Mil.
Gross Profit was $4,630 Mil.
Total Current Assets was $1,393 Mil.
Total Assets was $7,103 Mil.
Property, Plant and Equipment(Net PPE) was $166 Mil.
Depreciation, Depletion and Amortization(DDA) was $72 Mil.
Selling, General, & Admin. Expense(SGA) was $0 Mil.
Total Current Liabilities was $175 Mil.
Long-Term Debt & Capital Lease Obligation was $588 Mil.
Net Income was $96 Mil.
Gross Profit was $20 Mil.
Cash Flow from Operations was $453 Mil.
Total Receivables was $658 Mil.
Revenue was $3,643 Mil.
Gross Profit was $3,643 Mil.
Total Current Assets was $1,071 Mil.
Total Assets was $6,514 Mil.
Property, Plant and Equipment(Net PPE) was $192 Mil.
Depreciation, Depletion and Amortization(DDA) was $82 Mil.
Selling, General, & Admin. Expense(SGA) was $0 Mil.
Total Current Liabilities was $152 Mil.
Long-Term Debt & Capital Lease Obligation was $420 Mil.




1. DSRI = Days Sales in Receivables Index

Measured as the ratio of Revenue in Total Receivables in year t to year t-1.

A large increase in DSR could be indicative of revenue inflation.

DSRI=(Receivables_t / Revenue_t) / (Receivables_t-1 / Revenue_t-1)
=(663.356 / 4629.631) / (658.499 / 3643.066)
=0.143285 / 0.180754
=0.7927

2. GMI = Gross Margin Index

Measured as the ratio of gross margin in year t-1 to gross margin in year t.

Gross margin has deteriorated when this index is above 1. A firm with poorer prospects is more likely to manipulate earnings.

GMI=GrossMargin_t-1 / GrossMargin_t
=(GrossProfit_t-1 / Revenue_t-1) / (GrossProfit_t / Revenue_t)
=(3643.066 / 3643.066) / (4629.631 / 4629.631)
=1 / 1
=1

3. AQI = Asset Quality Index

AQI is the ratio of asset quality in year t to year t-1.

Asset quality is measured as the ratio of non-current assets other than Property, Plant and Equipment to Total Assets.

AQI=(1 - (CurrentAssets_t + PPE_t) / TotalAssets_t) / (1 - (CurrentAssets_t-1 + PPE_t-1) / TotalAssets_t-1)
=(1 - (1392.75 + 165.589) / 7103.397) / (1 - (1071.212 + 191.625) / 6514.188)
=0.780621 / 0.806141
=0.9683

4. SGI = Sales Growth Index

Ratio of Revenue in year t to sales in year t-1.

Sales growth is not itself a measure of manipulation. However, growth companies are likely to find themselves under pressure to manipulate in order to keep up appearances.

SGI=Sales_t / Sales_t-1
=Revenue_t / Revenue_t-1
=4629.631 / 3643.066
=1.2708

5. DEPI = Depreciation Index

Measured as the ratio of the rate of Depreciation, Depletion and Amortization in year t-1 to the corresponding rate in year t.

DEPI greater than 1 indicates that assets are being depreciated at a slower rate. This suggests that the firm might be revising useful asset life assumptions upwards, or adopting a new method that is income friendly.

DEPI=(Depreciation_t-1 / (Depreciaton_t-1 + PPE_t-1)) / (Depreciation_t / (Depreciaton_t + PPE_t))
=(82.39 / (82.39 + 191.625)) / (72.24 / (72.24 + 165.589))
=0.300677 / 0.303748
=0.9899

Note: If the Depreciation, Depletion and Amortization data is not available, we assume that the depreciation rate is constant and set the Depreciation Index to 1.

6. SGAI = Sales, General and Administrative expenses Index

The ratio of Selling, General, & Admin. Expense(SGA) to Sales in year t relative to year t-1.

SGA expenses index > 1 means that the company is becoming less efficient in generate sales.

SGAI=(SGA_t / Sales_t) / (SGA_t-1 /Sales_t-1)
=(0 / 4629.631) / (0 / 3643.066)
=0 / 0
=1

7. LVGI = Leverage Index

The ratio of total debt to Total Assets in year t relative to yeat t-1.

An LVGI > 1 indicates an increase in leverage

LVGI=((LTD_t + CurrentLiabilities_t) / TotalAssets_t) / ((LTD_t-1 + CurrentLiabilities_t-1) / TotalAssets_t-1)
=((587.96 + 175.219) / 7103.397) / ((420.254 + 151.686) / 6514.188)
=0.107439 / 0.087799
=1.2237

8. TATA = Total Accruals to Total Assets

Total accruals calculated as the change in working capital accounts other than cash less depreciation.

TATA=(IncomefromContinuingOperations_t - CashFlowsfromOperations_t) / TotalAssets_t
=(NetIncome_t - NonOperatingIncome_t - CashFlowsfromOperations_t) / TotalAssets_t
=(96.336 - 19.609 - 452.988) / 7103.397
=-0.052969

An M-Score of equal or less than -1.78 suggests that the company is unlikely to be a manipulator. An M-Score of greater than -1.78 signals that the company is likely to be a manipulator.

Mercury General has a M-score of -2.76 suggests that the company is unlikely to be a manipulator.


Mercury General Beneish M-Score Related Terms

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Mercury General (Mercury General) Business Description

Traded in Other Exchanges
Address
4484 Wilshire Boulevard, Los Angeles, CA, USA, 90010
Mercury General Corp is an insurance holding company operating in the property-casualty market, where it focuses on low-cost auto insurance for individuals, with operations in nearly 13 United States of America states. However, its business--about 75% of premiums--comes from California, where it was established by George Joseph, the current company chairman, and majority owner. Its insurance is distributed exclusively through independent agents.
Executives
Joshua Eric Little director 192 E 200 N, THIRD FLOOR, ST. GEORGE UT 84770
Wei Pang officer: VP/Chief Technology Officer 555 W. IMPERIAL HIGHWAY, BREA CA 92821
Mark Allan Ribisi officer: President of AIS,subsidiary 16969 VON KARMAN AVE., IRVINE CA 92606
Katelyn Marie Gibbs officer: VP/Chief Experience Officer 555 W. IMPERIAL HIGHWAY, BREA CA 92821
Kelly Lynn Butler officer: VP/Chief Underwriting Officer 1700 GREENBRIAR LANE, BREA CA 92821
Joseph Vicky Wai Yee director 4484 WILSHIRE BLVD., LOS ANGELES CA 90010
George Joseph director, officer: Chairman of the Board 4484 WILSHIRE BLVD, LOS ANGELES CA 90010
George Gwyer Braunegg director 6121 SHENANDOAH AVE., LOS ANGELES CA 90010
Abby Hosseini officer: VP/Chief Information Officer 555 W. IMPERIAL HIGHWAY, BREA CA 92821
Brandt Minnich officer: Vice President, Marketing 1700 GREENBRIAR LANE, BREA CA 92821
Gabriel Tirador officer: President, other: Director
Charles Toney officer: Vice President
Jeffrey Michael Schroeder officer: VP/Chief Product Officer 1700 GREENBRIAR LANE, BREA CA 92821
Mike Curtius director
Ramona L Cappello director 4600 SLEEPYTIME DR, BOULDER CO 80301