Markel Group Inc. (NYSE:MKL) Position Increased by Bleakley Financial Group LLC

Bleakley Financial Group LLC raised its position in shares of Markel Group Inc. (NYSE:MKL) by 13.6% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 184 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after buying an additional 22 shares during the period. Bleakley Financial Group LLC’s holdings in Markel Group were worth $261,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of MKL. Equitable Trust Co. grew its holdings in Markel Group by 8.7% during the fourth quarter. Equitable Trust Co. now owns 200 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $284,000 after purchasing an additional 16 shares during the last quarter. Pavion Blue Capital LLC grew its stake in shares of Markel Group by 46.8% in the fourth quarter. Pavion Blue Capital LLC now owns 1,110 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $1,576,000 after acquiring an additional 354 shares during the last quarter. Arlington Trust Co LLC grew its stake in shares of Markel Group by 1,083.3% in the fourth quarter. Arlington Trust Co LLC now owns 142 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $202,000 after acquiring an additional 130 shares during the last quarter. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale grew its stake in shares of Markel Group by 5.3% in the fourth quarter. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale now owns 1,669 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $2,349,000 after acquiring an additional 84 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Smith Salley & Associates grew its stake in shares of Markel Group by 4.2% in the fourth quarter. Smith Salley & Associates now owns 7,751 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $11,006,000 after acquiring an additional 310 shares during the last quarter. 77.12% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Markel Group

In related news, CEO Thomas Sinnickson Gayner acquired 100 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 2nd. The stock was bought at an average cost of $1,414.74 per share, with a total value of $141,474.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief executive officer now owns 45,039 shares in the company, valued at $63,718,474.86. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In other Markel Group news, Director A. Lynne Puckett bought 72 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 2nd. The stock was bought at an average cost of $1,409.28 per share, for a total transaction of $101,468.16. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 960 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,352,908.80. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Thomas Sinnickson Gayner bought 100 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 2nd. The stock was acquired at an average price of $1,414.74 per share, with a total value of $141,474.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief executive officer now owns 45,039 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $63,718,474.86. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Company insiders own 1.71% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on MKL shares. Jefferies Financial Group downgraded shares of Markel Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and lowered their price objective for the stock from $1,680.00 to $1,500.00 in a research note on Monday, February 5th. Janney Montgomery Scott reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $1,600.00 target price on shares of Markel Group in a research report on Friday, March 15th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and issued a $1,475.00 target price on shares of Markel Group in a research report on Friday, February 2nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and five have issued a hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $1,450.00.

Markel Group Stock Down 0.4 %

Shares of NYSE MKL opened at $1,427.07 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $18.61 billion, a PE ratio of 9.71 and a beta of 0.70. The business has a fifty day moving average of $1,482.32 and a two-hundred day moving average of $1,445.33. Markel Group Inc. has a 52-week low of $1,272.43 and a 52-week high of $1,560.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a quick ratio of 0.62 and a current ratio of 0.62.

Markel Group (NYSE:MKL) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 31st. The insurance provider reported $56.48 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $23.58 by $32.90. The company had revenue of $3.71 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.75 billion. Markel Group had a return on equity of 11.22% and a net margin of 12.63%. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Markel Group Inc. will post 80.08 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

About Markel Group

Markel Group Inc, a diverse holding company, engages in marketing and underwriting specialty insurance products in the United States, Bermuda, the United Kingdom, and Germany. The company offers general and professional liability, personal lines, marine and energy, specialty programs, and workers' compensation insurance products; and property coverages that include fire, allied lines, and other specialized property coverages, including catastrophe-exposed property risks, such as earthquake and wind.