Markel Group reports 2024 third quarter and nine-months results, by @newswire

RICHMOND, Va., Oct. 30, 2024 /CNW/ -- Markel Group Inc. (NYSE: MKL) today reported its financial results for the third quarter of 2024. The Company also announced today it filed its Form 10-Q for the quarter ended September 30, 2024 with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Markel Group aspires to build one of the world's great companies and deploys three financial engines in pursuit of this goal: Insurance, Investments and Markel Ventures.

"We've consistently emphasized the value of our family of businesses that have found a home under the Markel Group umbrella. The results of 2024 so far underscore that benefit. Many of our businesses performed exceptionally, others made solid improvements where there was room for improvement, and a few faced slowdowns or challenges," said Tom Gayner, Chief Executive Officer. "Overall, we achieved strong results, and we're confident in our long-term ability for that to continue to be the case."

The following table presents summary financial data, by engine, for the quarters and nine months ended September 30, 2024 and 2023.

	Quarter Ended September 30,		Nine Months Ended September 30,
(dollars in thousands, except per share amounts)	2024	2023	2024	2023
Operating revenues:
Insurance	$ 2,185,758	$ 2,208,352	$ 6,519,744	$ 6,327,165
Investments:
Net investment income	233,384	191,015	671,042	518,536
Net investment gains (losses)	917,530	(265,917)	1,689,794	591,173
Other	14,971	(5,033)	45,174	(13,791)
Total Investments	1,165,885	(79,935)	2,406,010	1,095,918
Markel Ventures	1,259,621	1,246,769	3,854,008	3,738,028
Total operating revenues	$ 4,611,264	$ 3,375,186	$ 12,779,762	$ 11,161,111

Operating income:
Insurance ⁽¹⁾	$ 145,273	$ 69,870	$ 458,023	$ 444,571
Investments:
Net investment income	233,384	191,015	671,042	518,536
Net investment gains (losses)	917,530	(265,917)	1,689,794	591,173
Other	14,971	(5,033)	45,174	(13,791)
Total Investments	1,165,885	(79,935)	2,406,010	1,095,918
Markel Ventures	106,627	130,420	388,040	392,648
Consolidated segment operating income ⁽²⁾	1,417,785	120,355	3,252,073	1,933,137
Amortization of acquired intangible assets	(46,459)	(47,545)	(134,981)	(136,367)
Total operating income	$ 1,371,326	$ 72,810	$ 3,117,092	$ 1,796,770

Comprehensive income (loss) to shareholders	$ 1,329,458	$ (107,500)	$ 2,482,199	$ 1,103,414
Diluted net income per common share	$ 66.25	$ 3.14	$ 160.42	$ 90.69

Combined ratio	96.4 %	99.1 %	95.1 %	95.4 %

⁽¹⁾ See "Supplemental Financial Information" for the components of our Insurance engine operating income.

⁽²⁾ See "Non-GAAP Financial Measures" for additional information on this non-GAAP measure.

Highlights of results from the quarter and nine months:

Operating revenue growth of 37% and 15% for the quarter and nine months ended September 30, 2024, respectively, as well as significant growth in operating income, was driven by our Investments engine.
Our Investments engine benefited from more favorable market value movements within our equity portfolio in 2024 compared to 2023. Generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP) require that we include unrealized gains and losses on equity securities in net income. This may lead to short-term volatility in revenues and operating income that temporarily obscures our underlying operating performance.
Net investment income within our Investments engine increased 22% and 29% for the quarter and nine months ended September 30, 2024, respectively, reflecting higher interest rates and increased investment holdings in 2024 compared to 2023.
Our Insurance engine benefited from strong performance by our international operations, the favorable impact of underwriting actions by our U.S. operations and continued growth in our program services business in 2024, while the performance of our Reinsurance segment was negatively impacted by elevated levels of losses on certain product lines.
Underwriting results for the quarter and nine months ended September 30, 2024 included $62 million of net losses and loss adjustment expenses attributed to Hurricane Helene, or three points and one point on the quarter-to-date and year-to-date consolidated combined ratio, respectively.
Our Markel Ventures engine grew operating revenues in 2024 driven by our consumer and building products businesses, while operating income decreased due in part to lower operating margins at certain of our businesses.

We believe our financial performance is most meaningfully measured over longer periods of time, which tends to mitigate the effects of short-term volatility and also aligns with the long-term perspective we apply to operating our businesses and making investment decisions. The following table presents a long-term view of our performance.

	Nine Months Ended September 30,	Years Ended December 31,
(dollars in thousands)	2024	2023	2022	2021	2020
Operating income (loss):
Insurance ⁽¹⁾	$ 458,023	$ 348,145	$ 928,709	$ 718,800	$ 136,985
Investments ⁽²⁾	2,406,010	2,241,419	(1,167,548)	2,353,124	989,564
Markel Ventures	388,040	519,878	404,281	330,120	306,650
Consolidated segment operating income ⁽³⁾	3,252,073	3,109,442	165,442	3,402,044	1,433,199
Amortization and impairment	(134,981)	(180,614)	(258,778)	(160,539)	(159,315)
Total operating income (loss)	$ 3,117,092	$ 2,928,828	$ (93,336)	$ 3,241,505	$ 1,273,884

Net investment gains (losses) ⁽²⁾	$ 1,689,794	$ 1,524,054	$ (1,595,733)	$ 1,978,534	$ 617,979
Compound annual growth rate in closing stock price per share from December 31, 2019 to September 30, 2024	7 %


⁽¹⁾	See "Supplemental Financial Information" for the components of our Insurance engine operating income.
⁽²⁾	Investments engine operating income includes net investment gains (losses), which are primarily comprised of unrealized gains and losses on equity securities.
⁽³⁾	See "Non-GAAP Financial Measures" for additional information on this non-GAAP measure.

* * * * * * * *

A copy of our Form 10-Q is available on our website at mklgroup.com, under Investor Relations-Financials, or on the SEC website at www.sec.gov. Readers are urged to review the Form 10-Q for a more complete discussion of our financial performance. Our quarterly conference call, which will involve discussion of our financial results and business developments and may include forward-looking information, will be held Thursday, October 31, 2024, beginning at 9:30 a.m. (Eastern Time). Investors, analysts and the general public may listen to the call via live webcast at ir.mklgroup.com. The call may be accessed telephonically by dialing (800) 715-9871 in the U.S., or (646) 307-1963 internationally, and providing Conference ID: 4614568. A replay of the call will be available on our website approximately one hour after the conclusion of the call. Any person needing additional information can contact Markel Group's Investor Relations Department at IR@markel.com.

Supplemental Financial Information
The following table presents the components of our Insurance engine operating income.

	Quarter Ended September 30,		Nine Months Ended September 30,		Years Ended December 31,
(dollars in thousands)	2024	2023	2024	2023	2023	2022	2021	2020
Insurance operating income (loss):
Insurance segment	$ 109,584	$ 25,092	$ 350,073	$ 256,247	$ 162,176	$ 549,871	$ 696,413	$ 169,001
Reinsurance segment	(33,531)	(5,812)	(20,200)	33,606	(19,265)	83,859	(55,129)	(75,470)
Other insurance operations	69,220	50,590	128,150	154,718	205,234	294,979	77,516	43,454
Insurance	$ 145,273	$ 69,870	$ 458,023	$ 444,571	$ 348,145	$ 928,709	$ 718,800	$ 136,985

Non-GAAP Financial Measures
Consolidated segment operating income is a non-GAAP financial measure as it represents the total of the segment operating income from each of our operating segments and excludes items included in operating income. Consolidated segment operating income excludes amortization of acquired intangible assets and goodwill impairments arising from purchase accounting as they do not represent costs of operating the underlying businesses. The following table reconciles operating income to consolidated segment operating income.

	Quarter Ended September 30,		Nine Months Ended September 30,		Years Ended December 31,
(dollars in thousands)	2024	2023	2024	2023	2023	2022	2021	2020
Operating income (loss)	$ 1,371,326	$ 72,810	$ 3,117,092	$ 1,796,770	$ 2,928,828	$ (93,336)	$ 3,241,505	$ 1,273,884
Amortization of acquired intangible assets	46,459	47,545	134,981	136,367	180,614	178,778	160,539	159,315
Impairment of goodwill	—	—	—	—	—	80,000	—	—
Consolidated segment operating income	$ 1,417,785	$ 120,355	$ 3,252,073	$ 1,933,137	$ 3,109,442	$ 165,442	$ 3,402,044	$ 1,433,199

About Markel Group
Markel Group Inc. is a diverse family of companies that includes everything from insurance to bakery equipment, building supplies, houseplants, and more. The leadership teams of these businesses operate with a high degree of independence, while at the same time living the values that we call the Markel Style. Our specialty insurance business sits at the core of our company. Through decades of sound underwriting, the insurance team has provided the capital base from which we built a system of businesses and investments that collectively increase Markel Group's durability and adaptability. It's a system that provides diverse income streams, access to a wide range of investment opportunities, and the ability to efficiently move capital to the best ideas across the company. Most importantly though, this system enables each of our businesses to advance our shared goal of helping our customers, associates, and shareholders win over the long term. Visit mklgroup.com to learn more.

Cautionary Statement
Certain of the statements in this release may be considered forward-looking statements as defined in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, as amended. Statements that are not historical facts, including statements about our beliefs, plans or expectations, are forward-looking statements. These statements are based on our current plans, estimates and expectations. There are risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed in or suggested by such statements. Factors that may cause actual results to differ are often presented with the forward-looking statements themselves. Additional factors that could cause actual results to differ from those predicted are set forth in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2023, including under "Business Overview," "Risk Factors," "Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations," "Safe Harbor and Cautionary Statement," and "Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures About Market Risk," and in our Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended September 30, 2024, including under "Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations," "Safe Harbor and Cautionary Statement," and "Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures About Market Risk". We assume no obligation to update this release (including any forward-looking statements) as a result of new information, developments, or otherwise. This release speaks only as of the date issued.