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

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

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

Donegal Group Stock Performance

The company has a market cap of $564.03 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.89 and a beta of -0.06. 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 fifty day moving average of $15.25 and a two-hundred day moving average of $14.35.

Donegal Group Dividend Announcement

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

Insider Activity at Donegal Group

In other news, VP Sanjay Pandey sold 3,766 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $16.50, for a total transaction of $62,139.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 6,871 shares in the company, valued at $113,371.50. This trade represents a 35.40 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CAO David Benjamin Bawel sold 9,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $15.50, for a total value of $139,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 19,665 shares in the company, valued at $304,807.50. The trade was a 31.40 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders acquired 260,188 shares of company stock worth $4,047,445 and sold 124,266 shares worth $1,932,589. 6.63% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of DGICA. Barclays PLC raised its position in shares of Donegal Group by 38.7% in the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 64,952 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $957,000 after acquiring an additional 18,132 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Donegal Group by 1.4% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 364,313 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $5,371,000 after buying an additional 4,933 shares during the period. Martingale Asset Management L P boosted its holdings in shares of Donegal Group by 4.2% during the 3rd quarter. Martingale Asset Management L P now owns 22,353 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $329,000 after buying an additional 902 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC grew its position in shares of Donegal Group by 39.2% during the 3rd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 60,767 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $896,000 after buying an additional 17,125 shares during the period. Finally, Foundry Partners LLC increased its stake in shares of Donegal Group by 1.0% in the 3rd quarter. Foundry Partners LLC now owns 244,600 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $3,605,000 after acquiring an additional 2,310 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 27.96% of the company’s stock.

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.