Markel (NYSE: MKL) released fourth-quarter and full-year 2019 results late Tuesday. With echoes of last quarter's deceptively solid results in mind, you may have noticed several news headlines have indicated Markel's revenue and earnings this quarter technically fell short of Wall Street's estimates.
But make no mistake, Markel is rightly pleased with both its achievements in 2019 and its position heading into the new decade. And shares of the diversified financial holding company rallied nearly 6% on Wednesday to a fresh all-time high as the market absorbed the news.
Let's take a closer look at how Markel ended the year, starting with its headline numbers: