What if you had copied Markel Group?
Tom Gayner
The verdict
Copying Markel Group's 13F filings from Feb 2020 would have turned $10,000 into $23,407, less than the S&P 500 did.
The S&P 500 turned the same $10,000 into $24,790 over the same days. The copy returned +13.4% a year against +14.4% for the S&P 500, 1.0 points a year behind. Its worst fall was 35.6%, from Feb 19, 2020 to Mar 23, 2020. The S&P 500's worst fall over the test was 33.7%.
Copied Feb 10, 2020 to Nov 9, 2026 · SEC 13F filings and daily closes
What $10,000 became
- Copying Markel Group$23,407
- S&P 500$24,790
- Bought their first portfolio and never traded$22,091
If you had bought their first portfolio and never traded, you would have ended at $22,091, so following every move earned $1,315 more.
- $10,000 copied
- $23,407
- +134.1%, +13.4% a year
- In the S&P 500
- $24,790
- +147.9%, +14.4% a year
- No trading
- $22,091
- Bought their first portfolio and never traded
- Worst fall
- −35.6%
- Feb 19, 2020 to Mar 23, 2020
- Trades
- 142
- 96 buys, 46 sales over 29 filings; about 24% of the copy traded a year
The moves that made the most
- BRK.ABerkshire Hathaway+$1,222
Held since Feb 2020, the stock up 151%
- BRK.BBerkshire Hathaway+$1,136
Held since Feb 2020, the stock up 153%
- GOOGAlphabet+$1,119
Held since Feb 2020, the stock up 284%
- DEDeere+$959
Held since Feb 2020, the stock up 350%
- AMZNAmazon.com+$803
Held since Feb 2020, the stock up 150%
- AAPLApple+$681
Held since Feb 2020, the stock up 352%
The moves that cost the most
Held from Feb 2020 to Aug 2020, the stock down 41%
- DISWalt Disney−$84
Held since Feb 2020, the stock down 14%
Held since Feb 2020, the stock down 25%
Held since Feb 2022, the stock down 33%
- DGDollar General−$45
Held since Aug 2022, the stock down 42%
Held from Feb 2020 to Aug 2020, the stock down 23%
Year by year
| Year | Copy | S&P 500 | Gap, pts |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020from Feb 2020 | +14.5% | +13.8% | +0.7 |
| 2021 | +29.1% | +28.7% | +0.4 |
| 2022 | −13.1% | −18.2% | +5.1 |
| 2023 | +22.3% | +26.2% | −3.9 |
| 2024 | +22.4% | +24.9% | −2.5 |
| 2025 | +11.6% | +17.7% | −6.2 |
| 2026to Nov 2026 | +9.2% | +11.5% | −2.3 |
A historical test on paper, before costs and taxes. It trades at the close of the first trading day after each filing comes out, up to 45 days after the quarter, and skips delisted companies, which flatters it.