Donegal Group (NASDAQ:DGICA) Hits New 12-Month High on Insider Buying Activity

Donegal Group Inc. (NASDAQ:DGICA)’s stock price reached a new 52-week high on Tuesday following insider buying activity. The stock traded as high as $18.19 and last traded at $18.17, with a volume of 204423 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $17.49.

Specifically, major shareholder Mutual Insurance Co Donegal acquired 14,700 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 27th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $17.06 per share, with a total value of $250,782.00. Following the acquisition, the insider now directly owns 13,189,273 shares in the company, valued at approximately $225,008,997.38. The trade was a 0.11 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, major shareholder Mutual Insurance Co Donegal bought 12,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 25th. The stock was bought at an average price of $16.49 per share, for a total transaction of $197,880.00. Following the purchase, the insider now owns 13,164,372 shares in the company, valued at approximately $217,080,494.28. This represents a 0.09 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here.

Donegal Group Stock Up 0.7 %

The company has a quick ratio of 0.38, a current ratio of 0.38 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07. The firm has a market capitalization of $608.09 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.80 and a beta of -0.05. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $15.32 and a 200 day moving average of $15.35.

Donegal Group (NASDAQ:DGICA) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The insurance provider reported $0.69 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.30 by $0.39. Donegal Group had a return on equity of 9.50% and a net margin of 5.14%. The company had revenue of $249.70 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $250.61 million. As a group, analysts expect that Donegal Group Inc. will post 1.2 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Donegal Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 18th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 4th were paid a dividend of $0.1725 per share. This is a positive change from Donegal Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.17. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 4th. This represents a $0.69 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.85%. Donegal Group’s payout ratio is presently 45.39%.

Institutional Trading of Donegal Group

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of DGICA. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio grew its holdings in shares of Donegal Group by 167.0% during the fourth quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio now owns 12,905 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $200,000 after purchasing an additional 8,071 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC grew its stake in Donegal Group by 9.0% during the 4th quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 66,254 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $1,025,000 after buying an additional 5,487 shares during the last quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC grew its stake in Donegal Group by 15.4% during the 4th quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC now owns 41,810 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $647,000 after buying an additional 5,568 shares during the last quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP increased its position in Donegal Group by 7.4% in the fourth quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP now owns 49,200 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $761,000 after buying an additional 3,400 shares during the period. Finally, Two Sigma Investments LP lifted its stake in Donegal Group by 87.6% in the fourth quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP now owns 89,437 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $1,384,000 after buying an additional 41,763 shares during the last quarter. 27.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Donegal Group Company Profile

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.