Markel Group (NYSE:MKL) Upgraded by StockNews.com to Buy Rating

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Markel Group (NYSE:MKL) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a report published on Monday.

MKL has been the topic of a number of other reports. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price objective on shares of Markel Group from $1,590.00 to $1,600.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. TD Cowen cut shares of Markel Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and cut their price target for the company from $1,986.00 to $1,836.00 in a research report on Monday, December 2nd. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price objective on Markel Group from $1,700.00 to $1,675.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, November 1st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Markel Group presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $1,626.83.

Markel Group Stock Down 0.9 %

Shares of NYSE:MKL opened at $1,725.21 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $22.19 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.96 and a beta of 0.77. Markel Group has a 12-month low of $1,342.66 and a 12-month high of $1,809.11. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $1,688.88 and a 200 day simple moving average of $1,609.85. The company has a quick ratio of 0.60, a current ratio of 0.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26.

Markel Group (NYSE:MKL) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The insurance provider reported $17.34 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $21.97 by ($4.63). Markel Group had a return on equity of 10.86% and a net margin of 17.03%. The company had revenue of $3.69 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.74 billion. Analysts predict that Markel Group will post 86.73 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Trading of Markel Group

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in MKL. State Street Corp grew its stake in Markel Group by 4.2% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 329,209 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $516,391,000 after acquiring an additional 13,372 shares during the period. Davis Selected Advisers grew its position in Markel Group by 0.3% in the 2nd quarter. Davis Selected Advisers now owns 287,061 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $452,311,000 after purchasing an additional 970 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in Markel Group by 5.2% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 209,054 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $327,131,000 after purchasing an additional 10,254 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its stake in Markel Group by 4.9% during the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 113,556 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $178,931,000 after purchasing an additional 5,310 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Jennison Associates LLC raised its holdings in Markel Group by 2.4% during the third quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 71,633 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $112,362,000 after buying an additional 1,689 shares during the last quarter. 77.12% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Markel Group Company Profile

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.