Sentry Investment Management LLC Cuts Stock Position in Markel Group Inc. (NYSE:MKL)

Sentry Investment Management LLC lessened its position in shares of Markel Group Inc. (NYSE:MKL) by 14.1% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 226 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 37 shares during the quarter. Sentry Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Markel Group were worth $390,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of MKL. SpiderRock Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Markel Group by 199.4% during the third quarter. SpiderRock Advisors LLC now owns 473 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $742,000 after purchasing an additional 315 shares in the last quarter. Quilter Plc grew its stake in Markel Group by 7.2% during the 4th quarter. Quilter Plc now owns 33,139 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $57,206,000 after buying an additional 2,234 shares during the last quarter. Versor Investments LP increased its position in Markel Group by 72.4% during the 3rd quarter. Versor Investments LP now owns 381 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $598,000 after buying an additional 160 shares in the last quarter. Fiduciary Alliance LLC raised its stake in Markel Group by 25.2% in the fourth quarter. Fiduciary Alliance LLC now owns 1,881 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $3,247,000 after buying an additional 379 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its holdings in Markel Group by 10.4% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 5,571 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $8,736,000 after acquiring an additional 527 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 77.12% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Thomas Sinnickson Gayner bought 100 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 7th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $2,008.01 per share, for a total transaction of $200,801.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief executive officer now directly owns 48,945 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $98,282,049.45. This represents a 0.20 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. 1.71% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently issued reports on MKL. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Markel Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, February 14th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their target price on shares of Markel Group from $1,750.00 to $2,025.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Finally, TD Cowen cut shares of Markel Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and decreased their price target for the stock from $1,986.00 to $1,836.00 in a report on Monday, December 2nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and six have issued a hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Markel Group presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $1,685.17.

Markel Group Trading Up 0.6 %

Shares of NYSE:MKL opened at $1,848.75 on Tuesday. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $1,795.94 and a 200-day moving average price of $1,678.01. The stock has a market cap of $23.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.29 and a beta of 0.78. Markel Group Inc. has a 52-week low of $1,417.65 and a 52-week high of $2,063.68. 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 (NYSE:MKL) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The insurance provider reported $20.51 earnings per share (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 predict that Markel Group Inc. will post 96.25 EPS for the current 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.