Wedge Capital Management L L P NC Sells 1,366 Shares of Markel Group Inc. (NYSE:MKL)

Wedge Capital Management L L P NC lessened its stake in shares of Markel Group Inc. (NYSE:MKL) by 13.2% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 8,948 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 1,366 shares during the period. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC’s holdings in Markel Group were worth $15,446,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in MKL. SpiderRock Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Markel Group by 199.4% during the third quarter. SpiderRock Advisors LLC now owns 473 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $742,000 after acquiring an additional 315 shares during the period. Versor Investments LP grew its holdings in Markel Group by 72.4% in 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 during the last quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC bought a new position in Markel Group in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $2,803,000. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Markel Group by 10.4% during the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 5,571 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $8,736,000 after buying an additional 527 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Fiduciary Alliance LLC boosted its position in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 379 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 77.12% of the company’s stock.

Markel Group Stock Performance

NYSE:MKL opened at $1,776.14 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.60, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26. The stock has a market capitalization of $22.84 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.19 and a beta of 0.78. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $1,727.94 and a 200-day moving average of $1,623.72. Markel Group Inc. has a 1 year low of $1,342.66 and a 1 year high of $1,809.11.

Markel Group (NYSE:MKL) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The insurance provider reported $17.34 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $21.97 by ($4.63). Markel Group had a net margin of 17.03% and a return on equity of 10.86%. The business had revenue of $3.69 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.74 billion. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Markel Group Inc. will post 86.92 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on MKL shares. TD Cowen lowered Markel Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and lowered their price target for the company from $1,986.00 to $1,836.00 in a research note on Monday, December 2nd. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price target on shares of Markel Group from $1,590.00 to $1,600.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their target price on shares of Markel Group from $1,700.00 to $1,675.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded Markel Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, December 30th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Markel Group currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $1,626.83.

Markel Group 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.