Markel Group Inc. $MKL Shares Sold by California Public Employees Retirement System

California Public Employees Retirement System lessened its stake in shares of Markel Group Inc. (NYSE:MKL) by 7.7% in the first quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 30,920 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 2,589 shares during the quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System’s holdings in Markel Group were worth $59,183,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MKL. Valley National Advisers Inc. purchased a new position in Markel Group in the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Fideuram Asset Management Ireland dac purchased a new stake in shares of Markel Group during the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. Reflection Asset Management acquired a new position in shares of Markel Group in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Measured Wealth Private Client Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Markel Group in the third quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Finally, V Square Quantitative Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Markel Group during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 77.12% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Diane Leopold acquired 100 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 6th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $1,792.61 per share, with a total value of $179,261.00. Following the purchase, the director directly owned 2,190 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,925,815.90. This represents a 4.78% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Director Greta J. Harris sold 76 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,847.31, for a total value of $140,395.56. Following the sale, the director owned 645 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,191,514.95. The trade was a 10.54% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Company insiders own 1.08% of the company’s stock.

Markel Group Trading Down 0.1%

Shares of MKL stock opened at $1,970.12 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $24.65 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.20 and a beta of 0.66. Markel Group Inc. has a 1-year low of $1,719.41 and a 1-year high of $2,207.59. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24, a current ratio of 0.63 and a quick ratio of 0.63. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $1,878.19 and its 200-day simple moving average is $1,955.23.

Markel Group (NYSE:MKL) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The insurance provider reported ($18.90) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $26.38 by ($45.28). Markel Group had a return on equity of 7.90% and a net margin of 10.85%.The company had revenue of $3.55 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.66 billion. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Markel Group Inc. will post 114.11 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently issued reports on MKL shares. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Markel Group from a “buy” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Saturday, May 2nd. Wolfe Research began coverage on Markel Group in a report on Wednesday, July 1st. They issued an “underperform” rating for the company. Weiss Ratings lowered Markel Group from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research note on Thursday, June 11th. Brean Capital started coverage on Markel Group in a report on Tuesday, March 24th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $2,100.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Truist Financial lowered their price objective on Markel Group from $2,100.00 to $1,950.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Markel Group presently has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and a consensus target price of $2,025.00.

Markel Group 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.