W.R. Berkley (NYSE:WRB) Upgraded at Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of W.R. Berkley (NYSE:WRB) from a sell rating to a hold rating in a research report report published on Saturday.

A number of other research analysts also recently issued reports on the company. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their price target on W.R. Berkley from $75.00 to $70.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 27th. Mizuho dropped their price objective on shares of W.R. Berkley from $69.00 to $67.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 27th. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $75.00 target price (down from $76.00) on shares of W.R. Berkley in a report on Monday, February 2nd. Bank of America lowered their price target on shares of W.R. Berkley from $69.00 to $66.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 27th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group restated a “neutral” rating and set a $73.00 price target on shares of W.R. Berkley in a research report on Wednesday, January 7th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have issued a Hold rating and four have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $69.67.

W.R. Berkley Price Performance

Shares of WRB opened at $65.61 on Friday. The business’s 50-day moving average is $69.21 and its two-hundred day moving average is $71.89. The company has a market capitalization of $24.57 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.74, a P/E/G ratio of 2.59 and a beta of 0.35. W.R. Berkley has a fifty-two week low of $62.63 and a fifty-two week high of $78.96. 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) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, January 26th. The insurance provider reported $1.13 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.14 by ($0.01). W.R. Berkley had a net margin of 12.10% and a return on equity of 18.17%. The company had revenue of $3.18 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.18 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.13 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts predict that W.R. Berkley will post 4.33 earnings per share for the current year.

W.R. Berkley Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 4th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 23rd were given a $0.09 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 23rd. This represents a $0.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.5%. W.R. Berkley’s payout ratio is 8.09%.

Insider Buying and Selling at W.R. Berkley

In other W.R. Berkley news, major shareholder Sumitomo Insurance Co L. Mitsui bought 370,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 26th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $67.07 per share, for a total transaction of $24,815,900.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 54,959,504 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,686,133,933.28. This represents a 0.68% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Over the last three months, insiders purchased 9,088,939 shares of company stock worth $629,090,612. Corporate insiders own 23.30% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On W.R. Berkley

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Johnson Financial Group Inc. grew its position 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 purchasing an additional 138 shares during the period. Maridea Wealth Management LLC increased its stake 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 in the last quarter. Inspire Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of W.R. Berkley by 1.0% during the 4th quarter. Inspire Advisors LLC now owns 14,364 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $1,007,000 after purchasing an additional 144 shares during the last quarter. Physician Wealth Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in W.R. Berkley by 40.2% in the 3rd quarter. Physician Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 523 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $40,000 after buying an additional 150 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Valeo Financial Advisors LLC lifted its stake in W.R. Berkley by 3.3% in the 3rd quarter. Valeo Financial Advisors LLC now owns 4,788 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $367,000 after buying an additional 151 shares in the last quarter. 68.82% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About W.R. Berkley

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.