Gilliland Jeter Wealth Management LLC Purchases Shares of 371 Markel Group Inc. (NYSE:MKL)

Gilliland Jeter Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Markel Group Inc. (NYSE:MKL) during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm purchased 371 shares of the insurance provider’s stock, valued at approximately $527,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Morgan Stanley lifted its position in shares of Markel Group by 3.2% during the third quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 539,207 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $793,979,000 after purchasing an additional 16,597 shares in the last quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp lifted its position in shares of Markel Group by 2.8% during the fourth quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 129,541 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $183,935,000 after purchasing an additional 3,476 shares in the last quarter. Scharf Investments LLC lifted its position in shares of Markel Group by 4.0% during the fourth quarter. Scharf Investments LLC now owns 126,920 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $180,214,000 after purchasing an additional 4,933 shares in the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc lifted its position in shares of Markel Group by 3.0% during the third quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 94,781 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $139,564,000 after purchasing an additional 2,736 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Northern Trust Corp lifted its position in shares of Markel Group by 2.2% during the third quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 88,501 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $130,317,000 after purchasing an additional 1,929 shares in the last quarter. 77.12% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MKL has been the topic of a number of research reports. Janney Montgomery Scott reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $1,600.00 target price on shares of Markel Group in a research report on Friday, March 15th. Royal Bank of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $1,475.00 price objective on shares of Markel Group in a report on Friday, February 2nd. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group lowered shares of Markel Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and cut their price objective for the company from $1,680.00 to $1,500.00 in a report on Monday, February 5th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and five have assigned a hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $1,450.00.

Insider Buying and Selling at Markel Group

In other news, CEO Thomas Sinnickson Gayner bought 100 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, February 2nd. The stock was purchased at an average price of $1,414.74 per share, with a total value of $141,474.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief executive officer now owns 45,039 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $63,718,474.86. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In related news, CEO Thomas Sinnickson Gayner acquired 100 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 2nd. The stock was bought at an average price of $1,414.74 per share, with a total value of $141,474.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 45,039 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $63,718,474.86. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director A. Lynne Puckett acquired 72 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 2nd. The shares were bought at an average cost of $1,409.28 per share, with a total value of $101,468.16. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 960 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,352,908.80. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders own 1.71% of the company’s stock.

Markel Group Trading Down 1.0 %

NYSE MKL traded down $14.43 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $1,436.52. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 33,777 shares, compared to its average volume of 37,614. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $1,483.67 and a 200 day moving average of $1,444.82. Markel Group Inc. has a twelve month low of $1,272.43 and a twelve month high of $1,560.00. The firm has a market capitalization of $18.73 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.77 and a beta of 0.70. The company has a quick ratio of 0.62, a current ratio of 0.62 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26.

Markel Group (NYSE:MKL) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, January 31st. The insurance provider reported $56.48 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $23.58 by $32.90. Markel Group had a net margin of 12.63% and a return on equity of 11.22%. The firm had revenue of $3.71 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.75 billion. Equities research analysts forecast that Markel Group Inc. will post 80.08 earnings per share for the current fiscal 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.