Markel Group Inc. $MKL Holdings Lowered by Baillie Gifford & Co.

Baillie Gifford & Co. reduced its stake in Markel Group Inc. (NYSE:MKL) by 2.3% in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 196,886 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 4,737 shares during the quarter. Baillie Gifford & Co.’s holdings in Markel Group were worth $376,320,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. lifted its position in Markel Group by 25.6% in the third quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 147 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $281,000 after purchasing an additional 30 shares during the period. Hudson Value Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Markel Group by 0.9% in the third quarter. Hudson Value Partners LLC now owns 3,508 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $6,705,000 after buying an additional 32 shares during the period. Vantage Investment Partners LLC bought a new position in Markel Group during the third quarter valued at about $6,741,000. iA Global Asset Management Inc. bought a new position in Markel Group during the third quarter valued at about $493,000. Finally, Ridgewood Investments LLC grew its holdings in Markel Group by 0.8% during the third quarter. Ridgewood Investments LLC now owns 1,979 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $3,783,000 after acquiring an additional 15 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 77.12% of the company’s stock.

Markel Group Price Performance

NYSE MKL opened at $2,025.71 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.60, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24. Markel Group Inc. has a 1 year low of $1,621.89 and a 1 year high of $2,207.59. The company has a market cap of $25.54 billion, a PE ratio of 12.68 and a beta of 0.80. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $2,105.42 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $2,007.58.

Markel Group (NYSE:MKL) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, October 29th. The insurance provider reported $30.90 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $22.77 by $8.13. Markel Group had a net margin of 12.99% and a return on equity of 7.76%. The company had revenue of $3.93 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.77 billion. On average, analysts predict that Markel Group Inc. will post 96.25 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at Markel Group

In other news, CEO Simon Wilson sold 75 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $2,072.94, for a total value of $155,470.50. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 1,770 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,669,103.80. This trade represents a 4.07% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director Steven A. Markel sold 1,330 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $2,119.12, for a total value of $2,818,429.60. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 60,368 shares in the company, valued at $127,927,036.16. The trade was a 2.16% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 1,575 shares of company stock worth $3,330,900. Corporate insiders own 1.66% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MKL has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Markel Group from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, January 19th. TD Cowen reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Markel Group in a report on Tuesday, October 7th. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b+)” rating on shares of Markel Group in a report on Monday, December 29th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $2,025.00.

Markel Group Company Profile

Markel Group (NYSE: MKL) is a diversified insurance holding company best known for underwriting specialty insurance products. Founded in 1930 and headquartered in Richmond, Virginia, the company provides a wide range of commercial property and casualty coverages tailored to niche and hard-to-place risks. Its underwriting operations focus on specialty lines across multiple industries, delivering customized policy structures, program administration, and claims management services for complex exposures.

In addition to primary specialty insurance, Markel operates reinsurance and alternative risk-transfer activities and manages invested assets derived from underwriting float.