Pilgrim Partners Asia Pte Ltd Buys New Holdings in Markel Group Inc. (NYSE:MKL)

Pilgrim Partners Asia Pte Ltd purchased a new position in Markel Group Inc. (NYSE:MKL) in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm purchased 1,100 shares of the insurance provider’s stock, valued at approximately $1,899,000. Markel Group comprises 1.7% of Pilgrim Partners Asia Pte Ltd’s holdings, making the stock its 17th biggest holding.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of MKL. Davis Selected Advisers boosted its position in shares of Markel Group by 27.9% during the fourth quarter. Davis Selected Advisers now owns 370,522 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $639,606,000 after buying an additional 80,922 shares during the period. State Street Corp grew its stake in Markel Group by 4.2% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 329,209 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $516,391,000 after acquiring an additional 13,372 shares in the last quarter. Boston Partners boosted its position in Markel Group by 17.6% during the fourth quarter. Boston Partners now owns 281,820 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $486,580,000 after purchasing an additional 42,178 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in Markel Group by 5.2% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 209,054 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $327,131,000 after purchasing an additional 10,254 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank bought a new stake in Markel Group in the fourth quarter worth approximately $254,795,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 77.12% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

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

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Steven A. Markel sold 88 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,860.03, for a total value of $163,682.64. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 63,436 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $117,992,863.08. This represents a 0.14 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Thomas Sinnickson Gayner bought 100 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 7th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $2,008.01 per share, for a total transaction of $200,801.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief executive officer now owns 48,945 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $98,282,049.45. This trade represents a 0.20 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 2,034 shares of company stock valued at $3,778,952 in the last 90 days. 1.71% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Markel Group Trading Down 5.8 %

MKL stock opened at $1,721.17 on Friday. The business’s 50 day moving average is $1,868.94 and its 200-day moving average is $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 Inc. has a 1-year low of $1,417.65 and a 1-year high of $2,063.68. The firm has a market cap of $21.98 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.65 and a beta of 0.82.

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 return on equity of 7.55% and a net margin of 16.34%. Equities analysts anticipate that Markel Group Inc. will post 96.25 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Markel Group 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.