Donegal Group (NASDAQ:DGICA) Shares Gap Up Following Earnings Beat

Donegal Group Inc. (NASDAQ:DGICA) gapped up before the market opened on Thursday following a stronger than expected earnings report. The stock had previously closed at $14.54, but opened at $15.29. Donegal Group shares last traded at $15.21, with a volume of 4,250 shares traded.

The insurance provider reported $0.46 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.02 by $0.44. The firm had revenue of $249.86 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $249.60 million. Donegal Group had a return on equity of 0.89% and a net margin of 0.76%.

Donegal Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 1st will be paid a $0.172 dividend. This represents a $0.69 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.54%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 1st. Donegal Group’s payout ratio is currently 431.25%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

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

Insider Activity

In related news, major shareholder Mutual Insurance Co Donegal bought 9,024 shares of Donegal Group stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 30th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $14.96 per share, with a total value of $134,999.04. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 12,104,114 shares in the company, valued at $181,077,545.44. The trade was a 0.00 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In other news, major shareholder Mutual Insurance Co Donegal purchased 9,024 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 30th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $14.96 per share, with a total value of $134,999.04. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 12,104,114 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $181,077,545.44. This represents a 0.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, VP Vincent Anthony Viozzi sold 30,000 shares of Donegal Group stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $15.24, for a total value of $457,200.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 9,891 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $150,738.84. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders purchased 139,437 shares of company stock valued at $2,062,143. 6.63% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Donegal Group

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in DGICA. Innealta Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of Donegal Group during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $27,000. EntryPoint Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of Donegal Group during the first quarter worth $137,000. BNP Paribas Financial Markets lifted its holdings in shares of Donegal Group by 125.0% during the 1st quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 10,364 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $147,000 after purchasing an additional 5,757 shares during the last quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC boosted its position in shares of Donegal Group by 7.8% in the 2nd quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 31,091 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $389,000 after purchasing an additional 2,250 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Squarepoint Ops LLC purchased a new position in Donegal Group during the 2nd quarter worth $448,000. 27.96% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Donegal Group Stock Down 4.0 %

The company has a 50-day moving average of $14.86 and a 200-day moving average of $13.93. The company has a current ratio of 0.39, a quick ratio of 0.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07. The company has a market capitalization of $506.24 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 94.75 and a beta of -0.06.

About Donegal Group

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.