Insider Buying: Donegal Group (NASDAQ:DGICA) Major Shareholder Acquires $191,800.00 in Stock

Donegal Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:DGICA) major shareholder Mutual Insurance Co Donegal purchased 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 31st. The shares were acquired at an average price of $19.18 per share, for a total transaction of $191,800.00. Following the purchase, the insider directly owned 14,263,714 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $273,578,034.52. The trade was a 0.07% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Major shareholders that own more than 10% of a company’s shares are required to disclose their sales and purchases with the SEC.

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

• On Thursday, September 3rd, Mutual Insurance Co Donegal acquired 9,595 shares of Donegal Group stock. The stock was bought at an average cost of $19.53 per share, with a total value of $187,390.35.
• On Wednesday, September 2nd, Mutual Insurance Co Donegal bought 10,000 shares of Donegal Group stock. The stock was bought at an average price of $19.43 per share, with a total value of $194,300.00.
• On Tuesday, September 1st, Mutual Insurance Co Donegal bought 9,257 shares of Donegal Group stock. The shares were bought at an average cost of $19.17 per share, for a total transaction of $177,456.69.
• On Thursday, August 27th, Mutual Insurance Co Donegal purchased 10,000 shares of Donegal Group stock. The stock was bought at an average cost of $18.95 per share, with a total value of $189,500.00.
• On Wednesday, August 26th, Mutual Insurance Co Donegal acquired 9,508 shares of Donegal Group stock. The shares were bought at an average price of $19.11 per share, with a total value of $181,697.88.
• On Monday, August 24th, Mutual Insurance Co Donegal acquired 10,000 shares of Donegal Group stock. The shares were bought at an average cost of $19.06 per share, for a total transaction of $190,600.00.
• On Friday, August 21st, Mutual Insurance Co Donegal bought 10,000 shares of Donegal Group stock. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $18.68 per share, for a total transaction of $186,800.00.
• On Thursday, August 20th, Mutual Insurance Co Donegal bought 9,815 shares of Donegal Group stock. The stock was purchased at an average price of $18.66 per share, with a total value of $183,147.90.
• On Wednesday, August 19th, Mutual Insurance Co Donegal purchased 9,700 shares of Donegal Group stock. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $18.61 per share, with a total value of $180,517.00.
• On Monday, August 17th, Mutual Insurance Co Donegal bought 10,000 shares of Donegal Group stock. The stock was purchased at an average price of $18.52 per share, for a total transaction of $185,200.00.

Donegal Group Trading Up 0.2%

Shares of Donegal Group stock opened at $19.45 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $18.99 and a 200 day moving average price of $17.93. The stock has a market cap of $721.96 million, a PE ratio of 10.08 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, Inc. has a 1 year low of $16.11 and a 1 year high of $21.06.

Donegal Group (NASDAQ:DGICA) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The insurance provider reported $0.53 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.42 by $0.11. The firm had revenue of $241.12 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $231.53 million. Donegal Group had a return on equity of 10.65% and a net margin of 7.38%. Equities research analysts predict that Donegal Group, Inc. will post 1.75 earnings per share for the current year.

Donegal Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 14th. Shareholders of record on Friday, July 31st were issued a $0.1925 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, July 31st. This represents a $0.77 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.0%. Donegal Group’s payout ratio is presently 39.90%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Donegal Group

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its stake in Donegal Group by 0.4% in the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,737,266 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $29,846,000 after purchasing an additional 7,345 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Donegal Group by 4.0% in the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,008,217 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $19,549,000 after purchasing an additional 39,181 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Donegal Group by 2.3% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 534,703 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $10,685,000 after purchasing an additional 11,891 shares during the last quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC increased its holdings in shares of Donegal Group by 5.8% in the first quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 392,711 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $6,747,000 after purchasing an additional 21,500 shares during the last quarter. Finally, State Street Corp lifted its position in Donegal Group by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 391,729 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $7,827,000 after buying an additional 3,290 shares in the last quarter. 27.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on DGICA shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price target on shares of Donegal Group from $18.00 to $20.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 8th. Weiss Ratings raised Donegal Group from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a report on Friday, August 28th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Donegal Group presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $20.00.

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.