Mutual Insurance Co Donegal Buys 8,500 Shares of Donegal Group (NASDAQ:DGICA) Stock

Donegal Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:DGICA) major shareholder Mutual Insurance Co Donegal acquired 8,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 7th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $17.06 per share, with a total value of $145,010.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 13,963,204 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $238,212,260.24. This represents a 0.06% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 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 Friday, May 8th, Mutual Insurance Co Donegal bought 8,077 shares of Donegal Group stock. The stock was purchased at an average price of $17.13 per share, with a total value of $138,359.01.
• On Tuesday, May 5th, Mutual Insurance Co Donegal purchased 8,500 shares of Donegal Group stock. The shares were purchased 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 acquired 9,000 shares of Donegal Group stock. The stock was purchased at an average price of $17.63 per share, for a total transaction of $158,670.00.

Donegal Group Stock Performance

NASDAQ:DGICA opened at $16.92 on Wednesday. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $17.24 and a two-hundred day moving average of $18.59. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05, a current ratio of 0.39 and a quick ratio of 0.39. The stock has a market cap of $626.04 million, a P/E ratio of 9.45 and a beta of 0.01. Donegal Group, Inc. has a 1-year low of $16.11 and a 1-year high of $21.12.

Donegal Group (NASDAQ:DGICA) 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). The business had revenue of $236.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $247.83 million. Donegal Group had a return on equity of 10.31% and a net margin of 6.77%. On average, research analysts expect that Donegal Group, Inc. will post 1.6 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Donegal Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 1st will be issued a dividend of $0.1925 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 1st. This represents a $0.77 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.6%. This is a boost from Donegal Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.18. Donegal Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 43.02%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently commented on the company. Weiss Ratings cut Donegal Group from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research note on Monday. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price target on shares of Donegal Group from $19.00 to $18.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 1st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Donegal Group has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $18.00.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Donegal Group

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Royce & Associates LP raised its stake in Donegal Group by 579.4% during the fourth quarter. Royce & Associates LP now owns 169,853 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $3,394,000 after buying an additional 144,853 shares in the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Donegal Group by 117.3% in the 4th quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 236,124 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $4,718,000 after acquiring an additional 127,470 shares in the last quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP increased its holdings in shares of Donegal Group by 139.8% in the 3rd quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP now owns 152,432 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $2,956,000 after acquiring an additional 88,878 shares during the last quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd increased its holdings in shares of Donegal Group by 157.1% in the 2nd quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd now owns 131,574 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $2,635,000 after acquiring an additional 80,395 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Donegal Group during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $1,053,000. 27.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.