RICHMOND, Va., May 1, 2024 /CNW/ -- Markel Group Inc. (NYSE:MKL) today reported its financial results for the first quarter of 2024. The Company also announced today it filed its Form 10-Q for the quarter ended March 31, 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 are pleased with the overall performance of our businesses as we start the year," said Tom Gayner, Chief Executive Officer. "Our insurance team grew the top line year over year, and both operating income and the combined ratio improved significantly from the close of last year as we work towards our long-term profitability objectives. Net investment income increased amid higher interest rates, and our public investments were up meaningfully. Lastly, our Markel Ventures businesses had another terrific quarter, and we couldn't be more pleased with the results of their efforts. Our promise to shareholders is to drive strong performance over the long-term, and with quarters like these, we continue to make progress towards that goal." The following table presents summary financial data, by engine, for the three months ended March 31, 2024 and 2023. Three Months Ended March 31, (dollars in thousands, except per share amounts) 2024 2023 Operating revenues: Insurance $       2,185,718 $           2,009,932 Investments 1,140,331 528,777 Markel Ventures 1,140,606 1,104,680 Total operating revenues $       4,466,655 $           3,643,389 Operating income: Insurance (1) $          135,825 $              177,340 Investments 1,140,331 528,777 Markel Ventures 103,915 92,178 Consolidated segment operating income (2) 1,380,071 798,295 Amortization of acquired intangible assets (44,285) (44,399) Total operating income $       1,335,786 $              753,896 Comprehensive income to shareholders $          908,385 $              646,365 Diluted net income per common share $              75.43 $                  37.26 Combined ratio 95.2 % 94.0 % (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: Operating revenue and operating income growth of 23% and 77%, respectively, was primarily driven by our Investments engine. Our Investments engine benefited from the impact of more favorable market value movements within our equity portfolio in 2024 compared to 2023, as well as a 37% increase in net investment income reflecting higher interest rates 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. Our Markel Ventures engine grew segment operating income by 13% in 2024 as a result of revenue growth and improved operating margins across a number of our businesses. Growth in our Insurance engine revenues of 9% was primarily attributable to an increase in earned premiums driven by new business growth and more favorable rates on select lines of business. The higher combined ratio in 2024 compared to 2023 was primarily driven by a higher attritional loss ratio on our U.S. general liability and professional liability product lines. 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. Three Months Ended March 31, Years Ended December 31, (dollars in thousands) 2024 2023 2022 2021 2020