Marathon Asset Management Ltd Sells 1,885 Shares of Markel Group Inc. $MKL

Key Points

• Marathon Asset Management trimmed its stake in Markel Group by 7.6% in the fourth quarter, selling 1,885 shares and leaving it with 22,986 shares worth about $49.4 million.
• Institutional ownership remains high, with hedge funds and other institutions holding 77.12% of Markel’s stock; several firms, including Canerector and Select Equity Group, increased their positions significantly.
• Markel’s recent earnings disappointed, as the insurer reported $18.90 per share versus analyst expectations of $26.38 and revenue of $2.82 billion versus $3.66 billion expected, while analysts currently rate the stock a Hold on average.

Marathon Asset Management Ltd lowered its holdings in shares of Markel Group Inc. (NYSE:MKL - Free Report) by 7.6% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 22,986 shares of the insurance provider's stock after selling 1,885 shares during the period. Markel Group accounts for approximately 1.9% of Marathon Asset Management Ltd's holdings, making the stock its 20th largest position. Marathon Asset Management Ltd owned about 0.18% of Markel Group worth $49,412,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of MKL. Canerector Inc. lifted its position in Markel Group by 191,036.0% during the third quarter. Canerector Inc. now owns 10,703,616 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $20,458,463,000 after acquiring an additional 10,698,016 shares during the last quarter. Select Equity Group L.P. lifted its position in Markel Group by 75.9% during the second quarter. Select Equity Group L.P. now owns 336,369 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $671,850,000 after acquiring an additional 145,146 shares during the last quarter. Davis Selected Advisers lifted its position in Markel Group by 11.1% during the fourth quarter. Davis Selected Advisers now owns 415,160 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $892,496,000 after acquiring an additional 41,632 shares during the last quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. lifted its position in Markel Group by 3,235.4% during the fourth quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 25,316 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $54,421,000 after acquiring an additional 24,557 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Rakuten Investment Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Markel Group during the third quarter worth approximately $46,738,000. Institutional investors own 77.12% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at Markel Group

In other news, Director Diane Leopold acquired 100 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 6th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $1,792.61 per share, for a total transaction of $179,261.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 2,190 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,925,815.90. This trade represents a 4.78% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Simon Wilson sold 100 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $2,079.48, for a total transaction of $207,948.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 2,397 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,984,513.56. This represents a 4.00% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 1.08% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on MKL shares. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Markel Group from a "buy" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Saturday, May 2nd. Truist Financial dropped their price target on shares of Markel Group from $2,100.00 to $1,950.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Brean Capital started coverage on shares of Markel Group in a research report on Tuesday, March 24th. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $2,100.00 price target for the company. Finally, Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Markel Group from a "buy (b)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 29th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $2,025.00.

Markel Group Stock Down 0.3%

NYSE MKL opened at $1,859.75 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.63, a quick ratio of 0.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24. Markel Group Inc. has a 1-year low of $1,719.41 and a 1-year high of $2,207.59. The company has a 50 day moving average of $1,898.69 and a 200-day moving average of $2,015.25. The company has a market cap of $23.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.40 and a beta of 0.67.

Markel Group (NYSE:MKL - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The insurance provider reported ($18.90) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $26.38 by ($45.28). Markel Group had a net margin of 10.85% and a return on equity of 7.90%. The business had revenue of $2.82 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.66 billion. On average, equities research analysts expect that Markel Group Inc. will post 113.02 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Markel Group Profile

Markel Group NYSE: MKL is a diversified insurance holding company best known for underwriting specialty insurance products. Founded in 1930 and headquartered in Richmond, Virginia, the company provides a wide range of commercial property and casualty coverages tailored to niche and hard-to-place risks. Its underwriting operations focus on specialty lines across multiple industries, delivering customized policy structures, program administration, and claims management services for complex exposures.

In addition to primary specialty insurance, Markel operates reinsurance and alternative risk-transfer activities and manages invested assets derived from underwriting float.

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