Sumitomo Insurance Co Mitsui Purchases 20,000 Shares of W.R. Berkley (NYSE:WRB) Stock

W.R. Berkley Corporation (NYSE:WRB) major shareholder Sumitomo Insurance Co Mitsui acquired 20,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 12th. The shares were bought at an average price of $71.99 per share, with a total value of $1,439,800.00. Following the acquisition, the insider directly owned 56,576,652 shares in the company, valued at $4,072,953,177.48. This represents a 0.04% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Major shareholders that own more than 10% of a company’s stock are required to disclose their transactions with the SEC.

W.R. Berkley Trading Down 2.9%

Shares of NYSE:WRB traded down $2.05 during trading on Friday, reaching $69.60. 2,749,211 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,383,080. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $69.13 and its 200-day simple moving average is $72.11. 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 12-month low of $59.55 and a 12-month high of $78.96. The firm has a market capitalization of $26.45 billion, a PE ratio of 15.64, a P/E/G ratio of 2.99 and a beta of 0.37.

W.R. Berkley (NYSE:WRB) last announced 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). The firm had revenue of $3.18 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.18 billion. W.R. Berkley had a net margin of 12.10% and a return on equity of 18.35%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.13 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that W.R. Berkley Corporation will post 4.33 EPS for the current year.

W.R. Berkley Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 29th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 15th were given a dividend of $0.09 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was 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 is presently 8.09%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On W.R. Berkley

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in WRB. Entrust Financial LLC acquired a new stake in shares of W.R. Berkley in the 4th quarter worth $25,000. Compass Financial Services Inc purchased a new stake in W.R. Berkley in the third quarter valued at about $26,000. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. boosted its holdings in W.R. Berkley by 140.0% in the fourth quarter. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. now owns 360 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 210 shares in the last quarter. Twin Peaks Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in W.R. Berkley in the second quarter worth about $27,000. Finally, Elevation Point Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of W.R. Berkley during the second quarter worth about $34,000. 68.82% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently weighed in on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $73.00 price objective on shares of W.R. Berkley in a research note on Wednesday, January 7th. UBS Group set a $71.00 price target on shares of W.R. Berkley in a research report on Monday, February 2nd. Argus cut their price objective on shares of W.R. Berkley from $82.00 to $76.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock 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 note on Tuesday, January 27th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their target price on W.R. Berkley from $73.00 to $76.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 6th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have given a Hold rating and four have assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $69.67.

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.