Trexquant Investment LP Takes Position in Donegal Group, Inc. $DGICA

Key Points

• Trexquant Investment LP acquired 40,579 shares of Donegal Group, Inc. valued at approximately $797,000, indicating growing institutional interest in the insurance provider.
• Donegal Group recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.1825 per share, which corresponds to an annual yield of 3.9% based on a payout ratio of 30.67%.
• The company's stock has experienced a decline of 3.1% recently, with current trading at $18.86 and a market cap of $688.58 million.

Trexquant Investment LP acquired a new position in Donegal Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:DGICA - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 40,579 shares of the insurance provider's stock, valued at approximately $797,000. Trexquant Investment LP owned about 0.11% of Donegal Group as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. CWM LLC increased its holdings in Donegal Group by 78.0% in the 1st quarter. CWM LLC now owns 5,163 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $101,000 after acquiring an additional 2,263 shares during the last quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. increased its holdings in Donegal Group by 47.4% in the 1st quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 5,225 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $103,000 after acquiring an additional 1,681 shares during the last quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets increased its holdings in Donegal Group by 117.2% in the 4th quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 8,420 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $130,000 after acquiring an additional 4,544 shares during the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC purchased a new stake in Donegal Group in the 4th quarter worth about $173,000. Finally, Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio increased its holdings in Donegal Group by 167.0% in the 4th quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio now owns 12,905 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $200,000 after acquiring an additional 8,071 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 27.96% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Donegal Group

In other Donegal Group news, major shareholder Mutual Insurance Co Donegal purchased 19,352 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 9th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $19.24 per share, with a total value of $372,332.48. Following the completion of the acquisition, the insider directly owned 13,598,006 shares in the company, valued at $261,625,635.44. This trade represents a 0.14% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director David Charles King sold 4,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $17.51, for a total value of $78,795.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 2,500 shares in the company, valued at approximately $43,775. The trade was a 64.29% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders acquired 156,385 shares of company stock worth $2,873,001 over the last three months. Corporate insiders own 3.48% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have commented on DGICA. Wall Street Zen downgraded Donegal Group from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 9th. Zacks Research upgraded Donegal Group from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 3rd. Finally, Janney Montgomery Scott upgraded Donegal Group from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 2nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has assigned a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $18.00.

Donegal Group Trading Down 0.9%

Donegal Group stock traded down $0.18 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $19.10. The company had a trading volume of 167,341 shares, compared to its average volume of 132,123. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06, a current ratio of 0.40 and a quick ratio of 0.40. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $17.97 and a 200 day moving average price of $18.63. The firm has a market cap of $697.32 million and a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.03. Donegal Group, Inc. has a 12-month low of $14.06 and a 12-month high of $21.12.

Donegal Group (NASDAQ:DGICA - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 24th. The insurance provider reported $0.43 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.36 by $0.07. Donegal Group had a return on equity of 14.33% and a net margin of 8.33%.The business had revenue of $233.81 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $247.21 million. Equities analysts forecast that Donegal Group, Inc. will post 1.2 earnings per share for the current year.

Donegal Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 1st were issued a $0.1825 dividend. This represents a $0.73 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 1st. Donegal Group's payout ratio is 30.67%.

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.