Pinnacle Associates Ltd. Increases Holdings in Markel Group Inc. (NYSE:MKL)

Pinnacle Associates Ltd. increased its stake in shares of Markel Group Inc. (NYSE:MKL) by 7.1% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 17,656 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,167 shares during the quarter. Pinnacle Associates Ltd.’s holdings in Markel Group were worth $25,070,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Scharf Investments LLC lifted its position in Markel Group by 4.0% during the fourth quarter. Scharf Investments LLC now owns 126,920 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $180,214,000 after buying an additional 4,933 shares in the last quarter. Ossiam increased its stake in Markel Group by 106.3% during the second quarter. Ossiam now owns 262 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $362,000 after acquiring an additional 135 shares during the last quarter. First National Advisers LLC increased its stake in Markel Group by 347.8% during the third quarter. First National Advisers LLC now owns 900 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $1,325,000 after acquiring an additional 699 shares during the last quarter. Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec acquired a new stake in Markel Group during the third quarter worth $1,313,000. Finally, Sherbrooke Park Advisers LLC acquired a new stake in Markel Group during the third quarter worth $814,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 77.12% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

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

Insider Activity

In other news, Director A. Lynne Puckett bought 72 shares of Markel Group stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 2nd. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $1,409.28 per share, with a total value of $101,468.16. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 960 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,352,908.80. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In other news, Director A. Lynne Puckett bought 72 shares of Markel Group stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 2nd. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $1,409.28 per share, with a total value of $101,468.16. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 960 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,352,908.80. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Thomas Sinnickson Gayner bought 100 shares of Markel Group stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 2nd. The stock was purchased 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 directly owns 45,039 shares in the company, valued at approximately $63,718,474.86. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Company insiders own 1.75% of the company’s stock.

Markel Group Stock Down 0.4 %

NYSE MKL traded down $5.87 during trading on Friday, reaching $1,521.48. 39,571 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 41,208. The stock has a market cap of $19.95 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.35 and a beta of 0.70. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a quick ratio of 0.62 and a current ratio of 0.62. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $1,477.32 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $1,448.87. Markel Group Inc. has a 1 year low of $1,242.01 and a 1 year high of $1,560.00.

Markel Group (NYSE:MKL) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 31st. The insurance provider reported $56.48 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $23.58 by $32.90. Markel Group had a return on equity of 11.22% and a net margin of 12.63%. The company had revenue of $3.71 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.75 billion. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Markel Group Inc. will post 82.15 EPS 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.