The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company Boosts Position in W.R. Berkley Corporation $WRB

The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company raised its position in W.R. Berkley Corporation (NYSE:WRB) by 4.1% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 499,839 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 19,470 shares during the period. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company owned about 0.13% of W.R. Berkley worth $33,129,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Entrust Financial LLC acquired a new position in shares of W.R. Berkley during the 4th quarter worth $25,000. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. grew its stake in W.R. Berkley by 140.0% in the 4th quarter. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. now owns 360 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 210 shares during the last quarter. DV Equities LLC acquired a new stake in W.R. Berkley in the 4th quarter valued at about $29,000. Triumph Capital Management purchased a new position in W.R. Berkley during the 3rd quarter valued at about $35,000. Finally, Quarry LP purchased a new position in W.R. Berkley during the 4th quarter valued at about $39,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 68.82% of the company’s stock.

W.R. Berkley Price Performance

WRB stock opened at $72.68 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $27.06 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.92, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.38 and a beta of 0.29. The company has a quick ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 0.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. W.R. Berkley Corporation has a 52-week low of $62.87 and a 52-week high of $78.96. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $69.86 and its 200-day simple moving average is $68.63.

W.R. Berkley (NYSE:WRB) last released its earnings results on Monday, July 20th. The insurance provider reported $1.27 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.08 by $0.19. W.R. Berkley had a return on equity of 19.49% and a net margin of 12.94%.The firm had revenue of $3.72 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.28 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.05 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 2.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts expect that W.R. Berkley Corporation will post 4.79 EPS for the current year.

W.R. Berkley Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 2nd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, June 23rd were issued a $0.10 dividend. This is a positive change from W.R. Berkley’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.09. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, June 23rd. This represents a $0.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.6%. W.R. Berkley’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 8.21%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have issued reports on WRB. UBS Group reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $77.00 price target (up from $71.00) on shares of W.R. Berkley in a report on Monday. Atlantic Securities set a $74.00 price objective on shares of W.R. Berkley in a research note on Wednesday, July 15th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods restated a “market perform” rating on shares of W.R. Berkley in a research report on Tuesday, July 21st. Oppenheimer set a $70.00 target price on W.R. Berkley in a research note on Tuesday, July 21st. Finally, Barclays reiterated an “underweight” rating and set a $62.00 target price (down from $64.00) on shares of W.R. Berkley in a report on Friday, June 12th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have issued a Hold rating and six have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, W.R. Berkley currently has an average rating of “Reduce” and an average price target of $70.94.

W.R. Berkley Profile

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.