Insider Buying: Donegal Group (NASDAQ:DGICA) Major Shareholder Acquires 19,440 Shares of Stock

Key Points

• Mutual Insurance Co Donegal purchased an additional 19,440 shares of Donegal Group (NASDAQ:DGICA) at an average cost of $18.27 per share, raising their ownership to over 13.5 million shares.
• Donegal Group recently reported earnings of $0.43 per share, exceeding analyst estimates, with revenues of $233.81 million for the quarter.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.1825 per share, providing a 3.9% annualized yield, with a payout ratio currently at 30.67%.

Donegal Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:DGICA - Get Free Report) major shareholder Mutual Insurance Co Donegal acquired 19,440 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 2nd. The stock was bought at an average cost of $18.27 per share, with a total value of $355,168.80. Following the completion of the purchase, the insider owned 13,520,417 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $247,018,018.59. The trade was a 0.14% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Large shareholders that own at least 10% of a company's stock are required to disclose their transactions with the SEC.

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

• On Thursday, September 4th, Mutual Insurance Co Donegal purchased 19,212 shares of Donegal Group stock. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $19.22 per share, with a total value of $369,254.64.
• On Wednesday, September 3rd, Mutual Insurance Co Donegal acquired 20,000 shares of Donegal Group stock. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $18.37 per share, with a total value of $367,400.00.
• On Friday, August 29th, Mutual Insurance Co Donegal acquired 20,000 shares of Donegal Group stock. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $17.84 per share, with a total value of $356,800.00.
• On Thursday, August 28th, Mutual Insurance Co Donegal purchased 8,032 shares of Donegal Group stock. The stock was bought at an average cost of $17.61 per share, with a total value of $141,443.52.
• On Tuesday, August 26th, Mutual Insurance Co Donegal purchased 15,815 shares of Donegal Group stock. The stock was bought at an average cost of $17.45 per share, with a total value of $275,971.75.
• On Wednesday, August 27th, Mutual Insurance Co Donegal acquired 15,509 shares of Donegal Group stock. The stock was acquired at an average price of $17.49 per share, for a total transaction of $271,252.41.

Donegal Group Price Performance

Shares of DGICA stock traded up $0.03 on Tuesday, reaching $19.32. The company's stock had a trading volume of 67,080 shares, compared to its average volume of 131,414. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $17.97 and its 200-day simple moving average is $18.63. Donegal Group, Inc. has a 12-month low of $14.06 and a 12-month high of $21.12. The company has a quick ratio of 0.40, a current ratio of 0.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06. The company has a market capitalization of $705.19 million and a P/E ratio of 8.11.

Donegal Group (NASDAQ:DGICA - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 24th. The insurance provider reported $0.43 earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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 the consensus estimate of $247.21 million. As a group, equities analysts predict that Donegal Group, Inc. will post 1.2 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Donegal Group Announces Dividend

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

DGICA has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Wall Street Zen cut Donegal Group from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 9th. Zacks Research raised Donegal Group from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 3rd. Finally, Janney Montgomery Scott raised Donegal Group from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 2nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has issued a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $18.00.

Institutional Trading of Donegal Group

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Jump Financial LLC boosted its position in shares of Donegal Group by 3.1% in the 1st quarter. Jump Financial LLC now owns 17,952 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $352,000 after purchasing an additional 533 shares in the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC lifted its position in Donegal Group by 5.1% in the 2nd quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 14,578 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $282,000 after acquiring an additional 703 shares in the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE lifted its position in Donegal Group by 3.0% in the 4th quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 29,572 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $457,000 after acquiring an additional 871 shares in the last quarter. Corton Capital Inc. lifted its position in Donegal Group by 7.4% in the 4th quarter. Corton Capital Inc. now owns 16,101 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $249,000 after acquiring an additional 1,108 shares in the last quarter. Finally, CWM LLC lifted its position in Donegal Group by 21.9% in the 2nd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 6,293 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $126,000 after acquiring an additional 1,130 shares in the last quarter. 27.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.