Donegal Group (NASDAQ:DGICA) Major Shareholder Mutual Insurance Co Donegal Buys 8,328 Shares

Key Points

• Major shareholder Mutual Insurance Co Donegal bought 8,328 shares of Donegal Group at $17.48 each, a $145,573 purchase that slightly increased its stake to 14.03 million shares.
• The insider has been actively buying throughout May, with several additional purchases of about 8,500 shares each over multiple trading days, signaling continued accumulation of DGICA stock.
• Donegal Group recently raised its quarterly dividend to $0.1925 per share, putting the annualized yield at about 4.4%, even as the company reported weaker-than-expected quarterly earnings and revenue.

Donegal Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:DGICA - Get Free Report) major shareholder Mutual Insurance Co Donegal acquired 8,328 shares of Donegal Group stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 19th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $17.48 per share, with a total value of $145,573.44. Following the completion of the purchase, the insider directly owned 14,030,609 shares of the company's stock, valued at $245,255,045.32. The trade was a 0.06% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Major shareholders that own more than 10% of a company's stock are required to disclose their sales and purchases with the SEC.

Mutual Insurance Co Donegal also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Wednesday, May 20th, Mutual Insurance Co Donegal acquired 8,500 shares of Donegal Group stock. The stock was purchased at an average price of $17.43 per share, with a total value of $148,155.00.
• On Monday, May 18th, Mutual Insurance Co Donegal acquired 8,500 shares of Donegal Group stock. The stock was purchased at an average price of $17.33 per share, with a total value of $147,305.00.
• On Friday, May 15th, Mutual Insurance Co Donegal bought 8,500 shares of Donegal Group stock. The shares were bought at an average cost of $17.16 per share, for a total transaction of $145,860.00.
• On Wednesday, May 13th, Mutual Insurance Co Donegal bought 8,500 shares of Donegal Group stock. The shares were bought at an average cost of $16.86 per share, for a total transaction of $143,310.00.
• On Monday, May 11th, Mutual Insurance Co Donegal bought 8,500 shares of Donegal Group stock. The shares were bought at an average cost of $17.18 per share, for a total transaction of $146,030.00.
• On Friday, May 8th, Mutual Insurance Co Donegal bought 8,077 shares of Donegal Group stock. The shares were bought at an average cost of $17.13 per share, for a total transaction of $138,359.01.
• On Thursday, May 7th, Mutual Insurance Co Donegal bought 8,500 shares of Donegal Group stock. The shares were bought at an average cost of $17.06 per share, for a total transaction of $145,010.00.
• On Tuesday, May 5th, Mutual Insurance Co Donegal bought 8,500 shares of Donegal Group stock. The shares were bought at an average cost of $16.50 per share, for a total transaction of $140,250.00.
• On Tuesday, March 3rd, Mutual Insurance Co Donegal bought 9,000 shares of Donegal Group stock. The shares were bought at an average cost of $17.63 per share, for a total transaction of $158,670.00.

Donegal Group Stock Performance

DGICA stock traded up $0.04 on Wednesday, reaching $17.44. 78,244 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 119,895. Donegal Group, Inc. has a 12 month low of $16.11 and a 12 month high of $21.06. The stock's fifty day moving average price is $17.20 and its 200 day moving average price is $18.53. The firm has a market capitalization of $646.15 million, a PE ratio of 9.74 and a beta of 0.01. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05, a current ratio of 0.39 and a quick ratio of 0.39.

Donegal Group (NASDAQ:DGICA - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The insurance provider reported $0.32 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.40 by ($0.08). Donegal Group had a return on equity of 10.31% and a net margin of 6.77%.The company had revenue of $236.00 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $247.83 million. On average, research analysts anticipate that Donegal Group, Inc. will post 1.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Donegal Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 15th. Investors of record on Friday, May 1st were given a dividend of $0.1925 per share. This represents a $0.77 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.4%. This is an increase from Donegal Group's previous quarterly dividend of $0.18. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 1st. Donegal Group's payout ratio is presently 43.02%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Donegal Group

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. State of Alaska Department of Revenue bought a new stake in Donegal Group in the 3rd quarter valued at $26,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Donegal Group by 576.6% in the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 2,747 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $55,000 after purchasing an additional 2,341 shares in the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Donegal Group by 422.6% in the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 3,679 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $74,000 after purchasing an additional 2,975 shares in the last quarter. IFP Advisors Inc boosted its stake in shares of Donegal Group by 1,377.6% in the 4th quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 3,768 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $75,000 after purchasing an additional 3,513 shares in the last quarter. Finally, CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co boosted its stake in shares of Donegal Group by 31.6% in the 4th quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co now owns 3,733 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $75,000 after purchasing an additional 896 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 27.96% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

DGICA has been the topic of several analyst reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their price target on shares of Donegal Group from $19.00 to $18.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 1st. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Donegal Group from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a report on Monday, May 11th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $18.00.

About Donegal Group

Donegal Group, Inc NASDAQ: DGICA is a property and casualty insurance holding company headquartered in Marietta, Pennsylvania. Through a network of independent agencies, the company offers a suite of personal and commercial insurance products. Its underwriting subsidiaries provide homeowners, automobile, farmowner, commercial multi-peril, surety and umbrella coverages designed to meet the needs of individuals, families and businesses.

The company's origins date back to 1925 with the formation of Donegal Mutual Insurance Company to serve rural communities in Pennsylvania.

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