Insider Buying: Donegal Group (NASDAQ:DGICA) Major Shareholder Buys $177,456.69 in Stock

Donegal Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:DGICA) major shareholder Mutual Insurance Co Donegal acquired 9,257 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 1st. The shares were purchased at an average price of $19.17 per share, for a total transaction of $177,456.69. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 14,272,971 shares in the company, valued at approximately $273,612,854.07. This represents a 0.06% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Major shareholders that own at least 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 bought 9,595 shares of Donegal Group stock. The stock was acquired at an average price 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 acquired at an average cost of $19.43 per share, with a total value of $194,300.00.
• On Monday, August 31st, Mutual Insurance Co Donegal purchased 10,000 shares of Donegal Group stock. The shares were acquired at an average price of $19.18 per share, for a total transaction of $191,800.00.
• On Thursday, August 27th, Mutual Insurance Co Donegal purchased 10,000 shares of Donegal Group stock. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $18.95 per share, for a total transaction of $189,500.00.
• On Wednesday, August 26th, Mutual Insurance Co Donegal acquired 9,508 shares of Donegal Group stock. The stock was acquired at an average cost 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 acquired at an average price of $19.06 per share, with a total value of $190,600.00.
• On Friday, August 21st, Mutual Insurance Co Donegal bought 10,000 shares of Donegal Group stock. The shares were acquired 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 acquired at an average price of $18.66 per share, for a total transaction of $183,147.90.
• On Wednesday, August 19th, Mutual Insurance Co Donegal purchased 9,700 shares of Donegal Group stock. The stock was bought 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 acquired 10,000 shares of Donegal Group stock. The shares were bought at an average cost of $18.52 per share, for a total transaction of $185,200.00.

Donegal Group Stock Up 0.2%

Donegal Group stock opened at $19.45 on Friday. The firm 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 quick ratio of 0.39 and a current ratio of 0.39. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $18.99 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $17.93. Donegal Group, Inc. has a twelve month low of $16.11 and a twelve month high of $21.06.

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

Donegal Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 14th. Investors of record on Friday, July 31st were given a dividend of $0.1925 per share. 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 dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 39.90%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Donegal Group by 139.8% in the 1st quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 39,413 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $774,000 after purchasing an additional 22,978 shares during the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. grew its stake in Donegal Group by 7.9% in the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 109,791 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $2,155,000 after buying an additional 8,004 shares during the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC raised its holdings in Donegal Group by 1.9% in the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 91,814 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $1,802,000 after acquiring an additional 1,696 shares during the period. Jane Street Group LLC acquired a new position in Donegal Group during the 1st quarter worth $689,000. Finally, Rhumbline Advisers lifted its position in Donegal Group by 22.3% during the 2nd quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 32,824 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $657,000 after acquiring an additional 5,981 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 27.96% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have weighed in on DGICA. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on Donegal Group from $18.00 to $20.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 8th. Weiss Ratings upgraded 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 given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $20.00.

Donegal Group Company Profile

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.