Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd Acquires New Shares in Markel Group Inc. (NYSE:MKL)

Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Markel Group Inc. (NYSE:MKL) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund acquired 70 shares of the insurance provider’s stock, valued at approximately $121,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in MKL. Brooklyn Investment Group purchased a new position in Markel Group during the third quarter worth about $31,000. FPC Investment Advisory Inc. purchased a new position in Markel Group during the fourth quarter worth about $37,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. purchased a new position in Markel Group during the fourth quarter worth about $36,000. Larson Financial Group LLC purchased a new position in Markel Group during the third quarter worth about $36,000. Finally, Global Trust Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in Markel Group during the fourth quarter worth about $41,000. 77.12% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently commented on the company. StockNews.com cut Markel Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, February 14th. TD Cowen cut Markel Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and reduced their target price for the stock from $1,986.00 to $1,836.00 in a research report on Monday, December 2nd. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada upped their price objective on Markel Group from $1,750.00 to $2,025.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and five have given a hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $1,702.20.

Markel Group Price Performance

MKL opened at $1,833.40 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $1,852.81 and a 200-day moving average price of $1,718.08. Markel Group Inc. has a 12-month low of $1,417.65 and a 12-month high of $2,063.68. The company has a current ratio of 0.60, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26. The stock has a market capitalization of $23.41 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.21 and a beta of 0.82.

Markel Group (NYSE:MKL) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The insurance provider reported $20.51 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $20.66 by ($0.15). Markel Group had a net margin of 16.34% and a return on equity of 7.55%. Equities analysts predict that Markel Group Inc. will post 96.25 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Steven A. Markel sold 88 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,860.03, for a total value of $163,682.64. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 63,436 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $117,992,863.08. The trade was a 0.14 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Thomas Sinnickson Gayner bought 100 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 7th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $2,008.01 per share, with a total value of $200,801.00. Following the purchase, the chief executive officer now owns 48,945 shares in the company, valued at $98,282,049.45. The trade was a 0.20 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 2,034 shares of company stock valued at $3,778,952. Insiders own 1.71% of the company’s stock.

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.