Key Points
- Sumitomo Insurance Co Mitsui acquired 160,582 shares of W.R. Berkley on Feb. 20 at $70.80 each (~$11.37M), raising its stake 0.28% to 57,668,620 shares (valued ~ $4.083B); the purchase was disclosed in an SEC filing.
- W.R. Berkley declared a quarterly dividend of $0.09 per share (annualized $0.36) with an ex‑dividend/record date of Feb. 23, implying a yield of 0.5% and a payout ratio of 8.09%.
- The company reported quarterly EPS of $1.13 (missed estimates by $0.01) on $3.18B revenue, and analysts hold a consensus "Hold" rating with a $69.67 target; market cap is about $27.01B and P/E ~15.97.
W.R. Berkley Corporation (NYSE:WRB - Get Free Report) major shareholder Sumitomo Insurance Co Mitsui acquired 160,582 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 20th. The shares were bought at an average price of $70.80 per share, with a total value of $11,369,205.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 57,668,620 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,082,938,296. The trade was a 0.28% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Large shareholders that own at least 10% of a company's shares are required to disclose their transactions with the SEC.
W.R. Berkley Stock Performance
Shares of WRB stock opened at $71.08 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $27.01 billion, a PE ratio of 15.97, a PEG ratio of 2.94 and a beta of 0.37. The business's 50 day simple moving average is $69.40 and its 200 day simple moving average is $72.16. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 0.37 and a quick ratio of 0.37. W.R. Berkley Corporation has a one year low of $60.20 and a one year high of $78.96.
W.R. Berkley (NYSE:WRB - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, January 26th. The insurance provider reported $1.13 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.14 by ($0.01). W.R. Berkley had a return on equity of 18.35% and a net margin of 12.10%.The firm had revenue of $3.18 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.18 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.13 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts forecast that W.R. Berkley Corporation will post 4.33 earnings per share for the current year.
W.R. Berkley Announces Dividend
The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 4th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 23rd will be given a dividend of $0.09 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, February 23rd. This represents a $0.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.5%. W.R. Berkley's dividend payout ratio is 8.09%.
Analysts Set New Price Targets
A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on WRB shares. UBS Group set a $71.00 price objective on W.R. Berkley in a research note on Monday, February 2nd. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an "overweight" rating and set a $75.00 price target (down from $76.00) on shares of W.R. Berkley in a report on Monday, February 2nd. Truist Financial set a $80.00 price objective on shares of W.R. Berkley and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 27th. Mizuho dropped their target price on shares of W.R. Berkley from $69.00 to $67.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 27th. Finally, Barclays restated an "underweight" rating and issued a $64.00 price target (down from $73.00) on shares of W.R. Berkley in a report on Thursday, January 8th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have assigned a Hold rating and four have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $69.67.
Check Out Our Latest Stock Report on WRB
Hedge Funds Weigh In On W.R. Berkley
A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of WRB. Dean Capital Management increased its stake in W.R. Berkley by 3.2% during the 4th quarter. Dean Capital Management now owns 33,170 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $2,326,000 after purchasing an additional 1,013 shares in the last quarter. Mcguire Capital Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in shares of W.R. Berkley during the fourth quarter valued at about $88,000. Hamilton Wealth LLC increased its position in shares of W.R. Berkley by 18.2% during the fourth quarter. Hamilton Wealth LLC now owns 3,890 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $273,000 after acquiring an additional 600 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of W.R. Berkley by 0.4% in the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 4,913,337 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $344,523,000 after acquiring an additional 20,538 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Strive Financial Group LLC bought a new position in W.R. Berkley in the 4th quarter valued at about $263,000. 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.
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