State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D Trims Holdings in Markel Group Inc. (NYSE:MKL)

State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D trimmed its position in Markel Group Inc. (NYSE:MKL) by 3.7% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 4,446 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 173 shares during the period. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D’s holdings in Markel Group were worth $7,675,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MKL. Empirical Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in Markel Group in the 4th quarter valued at about $54,173,000. Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec lifted its holdings in Markel Group by 3,729.3% in the 3rd quarter. Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec now owns 14,896 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $23,366,000 after purchasing an additional 14,507 shares in the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lifted its holdings in Markel Group by 167.1% in the 4th quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 22,411 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $38,687,000 after purchasing an additional 14,022 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp lifted its holdings in Markel Group by 4.2% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 329,209 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $516,391,000 after purchasing an additional 13,372 shares in the last quarter. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in Markel Group by 156,757.1% in the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 10,980 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $17,223,000 after purchasing an additional 10,973 shares in the last quarter. 77.12% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Markel Group

In other news, CEO Thomas Sinnickson Gayner acquired 100 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 48,945 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $98,282,049.45. The trade was a 0.20 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 1.71% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Markel Group Trading Up 0.2 %

NYSE MKL opened at $1,872.34 on Wednesday. Markel Group Inc. has a one year low of $1,417.65 and a one year high of $2,063.68. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $1,784.88 and its 200 day moving average price is $1,666.20. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a current ratio of 0.60. The firm has a market capitalization of $24.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.41 and a beta of 0.78.

Markel Group (NYSE:MKL) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The insurance provider reported $20.51 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $20.66 by ($0.15). Markel Group had a net margin of 16.34% and a return on equity of 7.55%. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Markel Group Inc. will post 97.92 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MKL has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. StockNews.com lowered shares of Markel Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, February 14th. Royal Bank of Canada increased 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 report on Friday, February 7th. Finally, TD Cowen lowered shares of Markel Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and cut their price objective for the stock from $1,986.00 to $1,836.00 in a report on Monday, December 2nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and six have issued a hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Markel Group has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $1,685.17.

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.