Donegal Group (DGICA) Competitors

Donegal Group (NASDAQ:DGICA) and Hilltop (NYSE:HTH) are both small-cap finance companies, but which is the better stock? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their analyst recommendations, valuation, risk, profitability, institutional ownership, media sentiment, earnings and dividends.

Does the media favor DGICA or HTH?

In the previous week, Hilltop had 1 more articles in the media than Donegal Group. MarketBeat recorded 4 mentions for Hilltop and 3 mentions for Donegal Group. Donegal Group's average media sentiment score of 0.70 beat Hilltop's score of 0.35 indicating that Donegal Group is being referred to more favorably in the media.

Company	Very Positive	Positive	Neutral	Negative	Very Negative	Overall Sentiment
Donegal Group	0 Very Positive mention(s)	0 Positive mention(s)	2 Neutral mention(s)	0 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Positive
Hilltop	1 Very Positive mention(s)	0 Positive mention(s)	3 Neutral mention(s)	0 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Neutral

Do institutionals and insiders believe in DGICA or HTH?

28.0% of Donegal Group shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 57.1% of Hilltop shares are held by institutional investors. 6.6% of Donegal Group shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 29.9% of Hilltop shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Is DGICA or HTH a better dividend stock?

Donegal Group pays an annual dividend of $0.73 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.9%. Hilltop pays an annual dividend of $0.72 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.3%. Donegal Group pays out 35.6% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Hilltop pays out 36.5% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Both companies have healthy payout ratios and should be able to cover their dividend payments with earnings for the next several years. Donegal Group has increased its dividend for 5 consecutive years and Hilltop has increased its dividend for 8 consecutive years. Donegal Group is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and lower payout ratio.

Which has more volatility & risk, DGICA or HTH?

Donegal Group has a beta of 0.01, suggesting that its share price is 99% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Hilltop has a beta of 0.87, suggesting that its share price is 13% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Is DGICA or HTH more profitable?

Hilltop has a net margin of 7.87% compared to Donegal Group's net margin of 7.06%. Donegal Group's return on equity of 12.82% beat Hilltop's return on equity.

Company	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Donegal Group	7.06%	12.82%	2.91%
Hilltop	7.87%	5.79%	0.80%

Do analysts rate DGICA or HTH?

Donegal Group currently has a consensus price target of $18.00, suggesting a potential downside of 2.70%. Hilltop has a consensus price target of $33.00, suggesting a potential upside of 5.14%. Given Hilltop's higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe Hilltop is more favorable than Donegal Group.

Company	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Donegal Group	0 Sell rating(s)	1 Hold rating(s)	0 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.00
Hilltop	0 Sell rating(s)	3 Hold rating(s)	0 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.00

Which has preferable earnings and valuation, DGICA or HTH?

Hilltop has higher revenue and earnings than Donegal Group. Donegal Group is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Hilltop, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Company	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Donegal Group	$989.60M	0.67	$50.86M	$2.05	9.02
Hilltop	$1.61B	1.25	$113.21M	$1.97	15.93

Summary

Hilltop beats Donegal Group on 11 of the 17 factors compared between the two stocks.