Donegal Group (NASDAQ:DGICA) Reaches New 52-Week High Following Insider Buying Activity

Donegal Group Inc. (NASDAQ:DGICA - Get Free Report) reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Tuesday following insider buying activity. The company traded as high as $18.19 and last traded at $18.17, with a volume of 204423 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $17.49.

Specifically, major shareholder Mutual Insurance Co Donegal bought 14,700 shares of Donegal Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 27th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $17.06 per share, with a total value of $250,782.00. Following the purchase, the insider now owns 13,189,273 shares in the company, valued at $225,008,997.38. This represents a 0.11 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, major shareholder Mutual Insurance Co Donegal bought 12,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 25th. The shares were bought at an average price of $16.49 per share, for a total transaction of $197,880.00. Following the acquisition, the insider now owns 13,164,372 shares in the company, valued at $217,080,494.28. The trade was a 0.09 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here.

Donegal Group Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07, a current ratio of 0.38 and a quick ratio of 0.38. The firm has a market capitalization of $608.09 million, a PE ratio of 11.80 and a beta of -0.05. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $15.32 and a 200-day moving average price of $15.35.

Donegal Group (NASDAQ:DGICA - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The insurance provider reported $0.69 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.30 by $0.39. Donegal Group had a net margin of 5.14% and a return on equity of 9.50%. The firm had revenue of $249.70 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $250.61 million. Sell-side analysts forecast that Donegal Group Inc. will post 1.2 EPS for the current year.

Donegal Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 18th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 4th were paid a dividend of $0.1725 per share. This is an increase from Donegal Group's previous quarterly dividend of $0.17. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 4th. This represents a $0.69 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.85%. Donegal Group's dividend payout ratio is presently 45.39%.

Institutional Trading of Donegal Group

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS purchased a new stake in Donegal Group in the 4th quarter valued at about $68,000. SG Americas Securities LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Donegal Group in the fourth quarter worth approximately $128,000. BNP Paribas Financial Markets grew its holdings in Donegal Group by 117.2% in the fourth quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 8,420 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $130,000 after purchasing an additional 4,544 shares during the period. XTX Topco Ltd acquired a new position in Donegal Group during the fourth quarter worth approximately $162,000. Finally, Private Advisor Group LLC purchased a new position in Donegal Group during the fourth quarter worth approximately $177,000. 27.96% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Donegal Group Company Profile

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.