Donegal Group (NASDAQ:DGICA) Reaches New 12-Month High – Still a Buy?

Donegal Group Inc. (NASDAQ:DGICA)’s stock price hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Friday . The company traded as high as $16.66 and last traded at $16.66, with a volume of 57856 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $16.43.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, StockNews.com upgraded Donegal Group from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, October 25th.

Donegal Group Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07, a quick ratio of 0.38 and a current ratio of 0.38. The company has a market cap of $564.10 million, a P/E ratio of 21.90 and a beta of -0.06. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $15.20 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $14.32.

Donegal Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 15th. Investors of record on Friday, November 1st were issued a dividend of $0.172 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 1st. This represents a $0.69 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.13%. Donegal Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 90.79%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Donegal Group news, major shareholder Mutual Insurance Co Donegal purchased 8,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, November 25th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $16.19 per share, with a total value of $137,615.00. Following the acquisition, the insider now directly owns 12,713,138 shares in the company, valued at approximately $205,825,704.22. The trade was a 0.07 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, VP Sanjay Pandey sold 3,766 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $16.50, for a total value of $62,139.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 6,871 shares in the company, valued at approximately $113,371.50. The trade was a 35.40 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have purchased 260,188 shares of company stock valued at $4,047,445 and have sold 124,266 shares valued at $1,932,589. 6.63% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Donegal Group

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Donegal Group by 34.7% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,183,005 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $16,728,000 after buying an additional 304,477 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in Donegal Group by 1.4% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 364,313 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $5,371,000 after acquiring an additional 4,933 shares during the last quarter. Foundry Partners LLC grew its position in Donegal Group by 1.0% during the 3rd quarter. Foundry Partners LLC now owns 244,600 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $3,605,000 after acquiring an additional 2,310 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its position in Donegal Group by 4.4% during the 2nd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 129,551 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $1,669,000 after acquiring an additional 5,416 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. grew its position in Donegal Group by 82.1% during the 3rd quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. now owns 105,257 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $1,551,000 after acquiring an additional 47,447 shares during the last quarter. 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.