Astoria Portfolio Advisors LLC. Makes New Investment in Markel Group Inc. (NYSE:MKL)

Astoria Portfolio Advisors LLC. bought a new position in shares of Markel Group Inc. (NYSE:MKL) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 125 shares of the insurance provider’s stock, valued at approximately $215,000.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in MKL. Gold Investment Management Ltd. raised its stake in shares of Markel Group by 0.6% during the third quarter. Gold Investment Management Ltd. now owns 1,219 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $1,912,000 after acquiring an additional 7 shares during the last quarter. Freedom Day Solutions LLC raised its position in Markel Group by 0.5% during the 3rd quarter. Freedom Day Solutions LLC now owns 1,483 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $2,326,000 after purchasing an additional 8 shares during the last quarter. Hunter Associates Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in Markel Group by 1.1% during the 3rd quarter. Hunter Associates Investment Management LLC now owns 745 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $1,170,000 after buying an additional 8 shares during the period. Financial Advocates Investment Management grew its position in shares of Markel Group by 3.2% in the 3rd quarter. Financial Advocates Investment Management now owns 259 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $406,000 after buying an additional 8 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Atria Investments Inc increased its stake in shares of Markel Group by 0.5% in the third quarter. Atria Investments Inc now owns 1,974 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $3,096,000 after buying an additional 10 shares during the period. 77.12% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Markel Group Trading Up 0.4 %

MKL opened at $1,776.14 on Monday. The company has a market cap of $22.84 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.19 and a beta of 0.78. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $1,727.94 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $1,624.58. The company has a current ratio of 0.60, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26. 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 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $21.97 by ($4.63). The firm had revenue of $3.69 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.74 billion. Markel Group had a net margin of 17.03% and a return on equity of 10.86%. Analysts predict that Markel Group Inc. will post 86.92 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently commented on the company. StockNews.com upgraded Markel Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, December 30th. TD Cowen downgraded shares of Markel Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and lowered their target price for the stock from $1,986.00 to $1,836.00 in a research note on Monday, December 2nd. Royal Bank of Canada cut their price target 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, Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price objective on Markel Group from $1,590.00 to $1,600.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus 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.