Markel Group Inc. (NYSE:MKL) Shares Acquired by Franklin Resources Inc.

Franklin Resources Inc. increased its stake in shares of Markel Group Inc. (NYSE:MKL) by 10.4% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 5,571 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 527 shares during the quarter. Franklin Resources Inc.’s holdings in Markel Group were worth $8,736,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of MKL. Brooklyn Investment Group acquired a new position in shares of Markel Group during the third quarter worth about $31,000. Toth Financial Advisory Corp lifted its stake in Markel Group by 1,000.0% in the third quarter. Toth Financial Advisory Corp now owns 22 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $35,000 after acquiring an additional 20 shares during the last quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in Markel Group during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $36,000. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB purchased a new stake in shares of Markel Group in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $42,000. Finally, UMB Bank n.a. raised its holdings in shares of Markel Group by 833.3% in the 3rd quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 28 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $44,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 77.12% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the stock. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Markel Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 27th. TD Cowen downgraded Markel Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and dropped their price objective for the company from $1,986.00 to $1,836.00 in a report on Monday, December 2nd. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their target price on Markel Group from $1,590.00 to $1,600.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada cut their price objective on shares of Markel Group from $1,700.00 to $1,675.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, November 1st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and six have given a hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $1,626.83.

Markel Group Stock Performance

Shares of Markel Group stock opened at $1,727.20 on Friday. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $1,669.39 and its 200-day simple moving average is $1,602.68. Markel Group Inc. has a 12 month low of $1,342.66 and a 12 month high of $1,809.11. The stock has a market capitalization of $22.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.97 and a beta of 0.77. 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, October 30th. The insurance provider reported $17.34 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $21.97 by ($4.63). Markel Group had a net margin of 17.03% and a return on equity of 10.86%. The business had revenue of $3.69 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.74 billion. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Markel Group Inc. will post 86.73 earnings per share for the current 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.