Donegal Group (NASDAQ:DGICA) Sets New 52-Week High After Insider Buying Activity

Donegal Group Inc. (NASDAQ:DGICA) hit a new 52-week high on Monday after an insider bought additional shares in the company. The company traded as high as $15.41 and last traded at $15.39, with a volume of 4606 shares. The stock had previously closed at $15.35.

Specifically, major shareholder Mutual Insurance Co Donegal purchased 6,005 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 13th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $15.34 per share, with a total value of $92,116.70. Following the purchase, the insider now directly owns 12,351,934 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $189,478,667.56. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, major shareholder Mutual Insurance Co Donegal purchased 8,390 shares of Donegal Group stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 11th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $15.00 per share, with a total value of $125,850.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the insider now owns 12,337,025 shares in the company, valued at $185,055,375. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. In other Donegal Group news, major shareholder Mutual Insurance Co Donegal bought 5,865 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, September 9th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $15.33 per share, with a total value of $89,910.45. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 12,323,325 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $188,916,572.25. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link.

Donegal Group Price Performance

The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $14.46 and its 200 day simple moving average is $13.75. The company has a quick ratio of 0.39, a current ratio of 0.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07. The stock has a market capitalization of $513.92 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 95.94 and a beta of -0.05.

Donegal Group (NASDAQ:DGICA) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The insurance provider reported $0.11 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.07 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $246.77 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $243.00 million. Donegal Group had a net margin of 0.76% and a return on equity of 0.89%. Equities research analysts forecast that Donegal Group Inc. will post 0.45 EPS for the current year.

Donegal Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 1st were paid a $0.172 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, August 1st. This represents a $0.69 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.47%. Donegal Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 431.25%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Donegal Group

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its holdings in Donegal Group by 3.0% during the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,825,664 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $25,541,000 after acquiring an additional 53,632 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in Donegal Group by 34.7% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,183,005 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $16,728,000 after buying an additional 304,477 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its stake in shares of Donegal Group by 4.4% in the 2nd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 129,551 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $1,669,000 after buying an additional 5,416 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC raised its position in shares of Donegal Group by 8.2% during the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 111,216 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $1,573,000 after acquiring an additional 8,400 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Donegal Group by 30.3% during the first quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 75,833 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $1,072,000 after acquiring an additional 17,614 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 27.96% of the company’s stock.

About Donegal Group

Donegal Group Inc, an insurance holding company, provides property and casualty insurance to businesses and individuals. It operates through three segments: Investment Function, Personal Lines of Insurance, and Commercial Lines of Insurance. The company offers private passenger automobile policies that provide protection against liability for bodily injury and property damage arising from automobile accidents, as well as protection against loss from damage to automobiles; and homeowners policies, which provide coverage for damage to residences and their contents from a range of perils, including fire, lightning, windstorm, and theft, as well as liability of the insured arising from injury to other persons or their property.