Key Points
- Sumitomo Insurance Co Mitsui bought 230,000 shares of W.R. Berkley on January 14 at an average price of $69.19 (~$15.91M), increasing its holding to 52,726,504 shares (a 0.44% ownership rise) valued at about $3.65B.
- W.R. Berkley recently beat quarterly expectations with EPS of $1.10 vs. $1.07 and revenue of $3.77B (up 10.8% year-over-year), and analysts forecast roughly $4.33 EPS for the full year.
- The stock has a market capitalization of about $26.3B, a P/E of 14.54, a 52-week range of $56.86–$78.96, and pays an annualized dividend of $0.36 (≈0.5% yield).
W.R. Berkley Corporation (NYSE:WRB - Get Free Report) major shareholder Sumitomo Insurance Co Mitsui bought 230,000 shares of W.R. Berkley stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 14th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $69.19 per share, with a total value of $15,913,700.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the insider directly owned 52,726,504 shares in the company, valued at $3,648,146,811.76. This trade represents a 0.44% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Major shareholders that own at least 10% of a company's stock are required to disclose their transactions with the SEC.
W.R. Berkley Price Performance
Shares of NYSE:WRB opened at $69.21 on Thursday. The firm's 50 day moving average is $72.12 and its two-hundred day moving average is $72.25. The firm has a market capitalization of $26.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.54, a PEG ratio of 2.52 and a beta of 0.39. The company has a current ratio of 0.37, a quick ratio of 0.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. W.R. Berkley Corporation has a 52 week low of $56.86 and a 52 week high of $78.96.
W.R. Berkley (NYSE:WRB - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, October 20th. The insurance provider reported $1.10 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.07 by $0.03. W.R. Berkley had a return on equity of 18.86% and a net margin of 13.01%.The business had revenue of $3.77 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.16 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.93 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 10.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts anticipate that W.R. Berkley Corporation will post 4.33 earnings per share for the current year.
W.R. Berkley Dividend Announcement
The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 29th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 15th were issued a dividend of $0.09 per share. This represents a $0.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 15th. W.R. Berkley's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 7.56%.
Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades
A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their target price on shares of W.R. Berkley from $76.00 to $75.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, October 21st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price objective on shares of W.R. Berkley from $73.00 to $76.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a report on Tuesday, January 6th. Cantor Fitzgerald lowered their price objective on shares of W.R. Berkley from $78.00 to $76.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday. Barclays restated an "underweight" rating and issued a $64.00 target price (down from $73.00) on shares of W.R. Berkley in a research report on Thursday, January 8th. Finally, Morgan Stanley set a $75.00 price target on W.R. Berkley in a research report on Tuesday, December 16th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have given a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $73.00.
Read Our Latest Analysis on W.R. Berkley
Institutional Trading of W.R. Berkley
Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Johnson Financial Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of W.R. Berkley by 22.3% in the third quarter. Johnson Financial Group Inc. now owns 756 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $58,000 after buying an additional 138 shares in the last quarter. Maridea Wealth Management LLC raised its position in shares of W.R. Berkley by 2.0% during the third quarter. Maridea Wealth Management LLC now owns 7,180 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $528,000 after purchasing an additional 141 shares during the period. Physician Wealth Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of W.R. Berkley by 40.2% during the third quarter. Physician Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 523 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $40,000 after purchasing an additional 150 shares during the last quarter. Valeo Financial Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of W.R. Berkley by 3.3% during the third quarter. Valeo Financial Advisors LLC now owns 4,788 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $367,000 after purchasing an additional 151 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Allworth Financial LP boosted its position in shares of W.R. Berkley by 4.8% in the 3rd quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 3,328 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $255,000 after purchasing an additional 153 shares during the period. 68.82% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.
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.
See Also
This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from InsiderTrades.com in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. Please send any questions or comments about this story to [email protected].
