Key Points
- Sumitomo Insurance Co Mitsui bought 204,350 shares of W.R. Berkley at an average price of $69.38 on Dec. 18, raising its stake to 48,805,938 shares (a 0.42% increase) as disclosed in an SEC filing.
- W.R. Berkley reported quarterly EPS of $1.10, beating estimates by $0.03, with revenue up 10.8% year-over-year to $3.77 billion and a return on equity near 18.9%.
- The company declared a $0.09 quarterly dividend (annualized $0.36, ~0.5% yield), trades with a market cap of about $26.65 billion, and carries an analyst consensus rating of Hold with an average price target of $73.93.
W.R. Berkley Corporation (NYSE:WRB - Get Free Report) major shareholder Sumitomo Insurance Co Mitsui bought 204,350 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 18th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $69.38 per share, with a total value of $14,177,803.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the insider owned 48,805,938 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,386,155,978.44. The trade was a 0.42% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Major shareholders that own 10% or more of a company's stock are required to disclose their sales and purchases with the SEC.
W.R. Berkley Trading Up 1.1%
W.R. Berkley stock opened at $70.13 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $26.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.73, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.65 and a beta of 0.37. W.R. Berkley Corporation has a 1 year low of $55.97 and a 1 year high of $78.96. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $73.56 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $72.62. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 0.37 and a current ratio of 0.37.
W.R. Berkley (NYSE:WRB - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, October 20th. The insurance provider reported $1.10 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.07 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $3.77 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.16 billion. W.R. Berkley had a return on equity of 18.86% and a net margin of 13.01%.The company's quarterly revenue was up 10.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.93 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that W.R. Berkley Corporation will post 4.33 EPS for the current fiscal year.
W.R. Berkley Dividend Announcement
The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 29th. Investors of record on Monday, December 15th will be given a $0.09 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 15th. This represents a $0.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.5%. W.R. Berkley's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 7.56%.
Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades
WRB has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "buy (b)" rating on shares of W.R. Berkley in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Wells Fargo & Company set a $66.00 price target on shares of W.R. Berkley and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 21st. Mizuho set a $67.00 price objective on shares of W.R. Berkley and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, December 15th. Morgan Stanley set a $75.00 target price on shares of W.R. Berkley in a research note on Tuesday, December 16th. Finally, Truist Financial set a $84.00 target price on W.R. Berkley and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, October 21st. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have given a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $73.93.
View Our Latest Research Report on W.R. Berkley
Institutional Investors Weigh In On W.R. Berkley
A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Compass Financial Services Inc acquired a new position in shares of W.R. Berkley in the third quarter worth $26,000. Hilltop National Bank purchased a new position in W.R. Berkley in the second quarter valued at about $27,000. Twin Peaks Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in W.R. Berkley in the second quarter valued at about $27,000. Elevation Point Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new position in W.R. Berkley in the 2nd quarter worth about $34,000. Finally, Triumph Capital Management purchased a new stake in shares of W.R. Berkley during the 3rd quarter worth about $35,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 68.82% of the company's stock.
W.R. Berkley Company Profile
(
Get Free Report)
W. R. Berkley Corporation (NYSE: WRB) is a publicly traded insurance holding company that underwrites and sells commercial property and casualty insurance, specialty insurance products, and reinsurance. Headquartered in Greenwich, Connecticut, the company operates a portfolio of underwriting businesses that focus on niche and specialty commercial risks, offering coverage tailored to industries such as transportation, construction, professional services and other commercial lines.
The company's product mix includes primary and excess casualty, property, professional liability, environmental and other specialty lines, together with treaty and facultative reinsurance solutions.
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