Watchman Group Inc. Reduces Stock Holdings in Markel Group Inc. (NYSE:MKL)

Watchman Group Inc. reduced its position in Markel Group Inc. (NYSE:MKL) by 0.8% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 2,485 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 21 shares during the period. Markel Group makes up approximately 1.1% of Watchman Group Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 27th largest holding. Watchman Group Inc.’s holdings in Markel Group were worth $4,290,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in MKL. Quilter Plc raised its stake in Markel Group by 7.2% in the 4th quarter. Quilter Plc now owns 33,139 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $57,206,000 after acquiring an additional 2,234 shares during the period. Fiduciary Alliance LLC lifted its stake in shares of Markel Group by 25.2% during the 4th quarter. Fiduciary Alliance LLC now owns 1,881 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $3,247,000 after buying an additional 379 shares in the last quarter. WCM Investment Management LLC bought a new position in Markel Group in the 4th quarter worth approximately $252,000. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its stake in Markel Group by 10.4% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 5,571 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $8,736,000 after buying an additional 527 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Hudson Value Partners LLC raised its holdings in Markel Group by 4.8% during the 4th quarter. Hudson Value Partners LLC now owns 3,339 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $5,764,000 after acquiring an additional 153 shares during the period. 77.12% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Markel Group

In other Markel Group news, Director Steven A. Markel sold 800 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,856.80, for a total value of $1,485,440.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 64,868 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $120,446,902.40. This represents a 1.22 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Thomas Sinnickson Gayner purchased 100 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 7th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $2,008.01 per share, for a total transaction of $200,801.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief executive officer now directly owns 48,945 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $98,282,049.45. This represents a 0.20 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 2,034 shares of company stock worth $3,778,952. 1.71% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on MKL shares. TD Cowen cut Markel Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and reduced their price target for the company from $1,986.00 to $1,836.00 in a research report on Monday, December 2nd. StockNews.com lowered Markel Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, February 14th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada increased their price target 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. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and five have given a hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $1,702.20.

Markel Group Stock Down 0.9 %

Shares of NYSE MKL opened at $1,853.88 on Friday. The business has a 50-day moving average of $1,865.72 and a 200-day moving average of $1,729.19. The firm has a market capitalization of $23.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.31 and a beta of 0.82. 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 Inc. has a 12 month low of $1,417.65 and a 12 month high of $2,063.68.

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