AGF Management Ltd. Trims Stake in Markel Group Inc. (NYSE:MKL)

AGF Management Ltd. reduced its position in Markel Group Inc. (NYSE:MKL) by 44.7% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 1,318 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 1,064 shares during the quarter. AGF Management Ltd.’s holdings in Markel Group were worth $2,275,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Entropy Technologies LP increased its position in shares of Markel Group by 114.9% during the third quarter. Entropy Technologies LP now owns 374 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $587,000 after acquiring an additional 200 shares during the period. Prime Capital Investment Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Markel Group by 6.0% during the third quarter. Prime Capital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 372 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $584,000 after acquiring an additional 21 shares during the period. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Markel Group by 8.0% during the third quarter. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC now owns 216 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $339,000 after acquiring an additional 16 shares during the period. Victory Capital Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Markel Group by 5.4% during the third quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 5,845 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $9,168,000 after acquiring an additional 300 shares during the period. Finally, Haverford Trust Co increased its position in shares of Markel Group by 86.3% during the third quarter. Haverford Trust Co now owns 434 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $681,000 after acquiring an additional 201 shares during the period. 77.12% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Markel Group

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on MKL shares. TD Cowen downgraded shares of 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 research note on Monday, December 2nd. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on shares of Markel Group from $1,750.00 to $2,025.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded shares of Markel Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, February 14th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and six have given a hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Markel Group presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $1,685.17.

Markel Group Stock Up 1.7 %

MKL stock opened at $1,850.33 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $23.63 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.30 and a beta of 0.81. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $1,837.87 and a 200-day simple moving average of $1,708.04. The company has a quick ratio of 0.60, a current ratio of 0.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26. Markel Group Inc. has a 52 week low of $1,417.65 and a 52 week high of $2,063.68.

Markel Group (NYSE:MKL) last released its earnings results 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 forecast that Markel Group Inc. will post 96.25 earnings per share 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.