Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund Cuts Stock Holdings in Markel Group Inc. (NYSE:MKL)

Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund cut its stake in Markel Group Inc. (NYSE:MKL) by 11.5% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 6,015 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 780 shares during the quarter. Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund’s holdings in Markel Group were worth $10,383,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Gold Investment Management Ltd. raised its position in Markel Group by 0.6% in the 3rd quarter. Gold Investment Management Ltd. now owns 1,219 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $1,912,000 after purchasing an additional 7 shares in the last quarter. Gilbert & Cook Inc. raised its holdings in Markel Group by 1.7% in the fourth quarter. Gilbert & Cook Inc. now owns 428 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $739,000 after acquiring an additional 7 shares in the last quarter. Greenleaf Trust lifted its stake in Markel Group by 3.4% in the fourth quarter. Greenleaf Trust now owns 213 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $368,000 after acquiring an additional 7 shares during the last quarter. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Markel Group by 1.5% in the 4th quarter. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC now owns 469 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $810,000 after purchasing an additional 7 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Hunter Associates Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in Markel Group by 1.1% during the 3rd quarter. Hunter Associates Investment Management LLC now owns 745 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $1,170,000 after buying an additional 8 shares during the last quarter. 77.12% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Markel Group Stock Performance

Shares of Markel Group stock opened at $1,837.64 on Monday. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $1,793.51 and its 200-day simple moving average is $1,675.65. Markel Group Inc. has a 12 month low of $1,417.65 and a 12 month high of $2,063.68. The stock has a market capitalization of $23.64 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.23 and a beta of 0.78. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a current ratio of 0.60 and a quick ratio of 0.60.

Markel Group (NYSE:MKL) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The insurance provider reported $20.51 EPS 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%. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Markel Group Inc. will post 96.25 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have weighed in on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price objective on shares of 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. StockNews.com lowered shares of Markel Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Finally, TD Cowen downgraded shares of Markel Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and decreased their price objective for the company from $1,986.00 to $1,836.00 in a research note on Monday, December 2nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and six have given a hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $1,685.17.

Insider Activity at Markel Group

In other news, CEO Thomas Sinnickson Gayner bought 100 shares of Markel Group stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 7th. The stock was bought at an average price of $2,008.01 per share, for a total transaction of $200,801.00. Following the purchase, the chief executive officer now owns 48,945 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $98,282,049.45. The trade was a 0.20 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. 1.71% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.