Markel Group Inc. (NYSE:MKL) Stock Holdings Increased by Arete Wealth Advisors LLC

Arete Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Markel Group Inc. (NYSE:MKL) by 8.3% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 564 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after buying an additional 43 shares during the quarter. Arete Wealth Advisors LLC’s holdings in Markel Group were worth $974,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. acquired a new position in Markel Group in the fourth quarter worth $36,000. FPC Investment Advisory Inc. bought a new position in shares of Markel Group in the 4th quarter worth about $37,000. Global Trust Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Markel Group in the 4th quarter valued at about $41,000. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB bought a new stake in shares of Markel Group during the 3rd quarter valued at about $42,000. Finally, Quarry LP raised its stake in Markel Group by 3,000.0% during the third quarter. Quarry LP now owns 31 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $49,000 after acquiring an additional 30 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 77.12% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Markel Group

In related news, Director Steven A. Markel sold 800 shares of Markel Group stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,856.80, for a total transaction of $1,485,440.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 64,868 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $120,446,902.40. The trade was a 1.22 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Thomas Sinnickson Gayner purchased 100 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 7th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $2,008.01 per share, with a total value of $200,801.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief executive officer now directly 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 90 days, insiders have sold 2,034 shares of company stock valued at $3,778,952. Company insiders own 1.71% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MKL has been the subject of a number of research reports. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their target price on Markel Group from $1,750.00 to $2,025.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. StockNews.com lowered Markel Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, February 14th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and five have issued a hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $1,702.20.

Markel Group Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE MKL opened at $1,721.17 on Friday. 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 market cap of $21.98 billion, a PE ratio of 8.65 and a beta of 0.82. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $1,868.94 and a 200-day simple moving average of $1,737.63. The company has a current ratio of 0.60, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26.

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

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.