** Shares of Los Angeles-based insurer Mercury General MCY.N jump 20.7% to $60.43 premarket
** MCY late Tuesday reported Q4 operating income of $2.78/shr, blowing past Wall Street expectations of $1.12/shr, according to estimates compiled by LSEG
** Q4 net premiums written jumped 16.1% to $1.31 billion, beating expectations of $1.24 billion
** MCY's Q4 combined ratio improved to 91.4% from 98.6% a year earlier
** A ratio below 100% means the insurer earned more in premiums than it paid out in claims
** Raymond James says Q4 results reflect some of the strongest underlying results in over the last 10 years
** Meanwhile, MCY forecast net catastrophe losses from the devastating Los Angeles wildfires to be between $155 million and $325 million
** Brokerage expects MCY to benefit from a potential change in the pricing environment for California homeowners' insurance market over the next 18 months
** MCY stock down 24.7% YTD
(Reporting by Arasu Kannagi Basil in Bengaluru)
((ArasuKannagi.Basil@thomsonreuters.com;))
Disclaimer: Investing carries risk. This is not financial advice. The above content should not be regarded as an offer, recommendation, or solicitation on acquiring or disposing of any financial products, any associated discussions, comments, or posts by author or other users should not be considered as such either. It is solely for general information purpose only, which does not consider your own investment objectives, financial situations or needs. TTM assumes no responsibility or warranty for the accuracy and completeness of the information, investors should do their own research and may seek professional advice before investing.