W.R. Berkley (NYSE:WRB) Major Shareholder Buys $20,031,869.34 in Stock

W.R. Berkley Corporation (NYSE:WRB) major shareholder Sumitomo Insurance Co Mitsui bought 281,386 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 17th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $71.19 per share, with a total value of $20,031,869.34. Following the completion of the purchase, the insider directly owned 56,878,038 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,049,147,525.22. This represents a 0.50% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 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 Down 0.2%

WRB traded down $0.13 on Wednesday, reaching $70.91. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,840,632 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,409,442. 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 1 year low of $59.55 and a 1 year high of $78.96. The business’s 50 day moving average is $69.34 and its 200 day moving average is $72.17. The stock has a market cap of $26.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.93, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.91 and a beta of 0.37.

W.R. Berkley (NYSE:WRB) last posted its earnings results on Monday, January 26th. The insurance provider reported $1.13 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 18.35%. The company had revenue of $3.18 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.18 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.13 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts forecast that W.R. Berkley Corporation will post 4.33 EPS for the current fiscal year.

W.R. Berkley Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 4th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 23rd will be given a dividend of $0.09 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, February 23rd. This represents a $0.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.5%. W.R. Berkley’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 8.09%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on WRB shares. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b)” rating on shares of W.R. Berkley in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on W.R. Berkley from $68.00 to $66.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 27th. UBS Group set a $71.00 price objective on shares of W.R. Berkley in a research note on Monday, February 2nd. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their target price on shares of W.R. Berkley from $75.00 to $70.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 27th. Finally, Truist Financial set a $80.00 price target on shares of W.R. Berkley and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 27th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have issued a Hold rating and four have given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $69.67.

Key Stories Impacting W.R. Berkley

Here are the key news stories impacting W.R. Berkley this week:

• Neutral Sentiment: Market commentary notes WRB’s relative underperformance versus peers despite some daily gains; this signals mixed market sentiment rather than a company‑specific surprise. W.R. Berkley Corp. stock underperforms Tuesday
• Neutral Sentiment: A recent roundup asks whether Wall Street analysts like WRB, summarizing analyst views and coverage — useful context but not a single catalyst. Do Wall Street analysts like W R Berkley stock?
• Negative Sentiment: Zacks Research cut multiple quarterly EPS forecasts (Q1–Q3 2026 and Q1–Q3 2027) and trimmed full‑year FY2026 and FY2027 estimates — examples: Q1 2026 lowered to $1.15 from $1.18, Q2 2026 to $1.09 from $1.12, Q1 2027 to $1.16 from $1.19, Q2 2027 to $1.22 from $1.25, Q3 2027 to $1.09 from $1.17; FY2026 was trimmed to $4.56 (from $4.63) and FY2027 to $4.78 (from $4.84). These downward revisions suggest Zacks expects slightly weaker near‑term results and are the primary negative catalyst for the stock today.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On W.R. Berkley

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in WRB. Brighton Jones LLC increased its stake in shares of W.R. Berkley by 75.6% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 50,503 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $2,955,000 after purchasing an additional 21,737 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC increased its position in W.R. Berkley by 9.7% during the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 33,990 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $2,419,000 after acquiring an additional 3,013 shares during the period. Acadian Asset Management LLC raised its stake in W.R. Berkley by 399.0% during the 1st quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 9,506 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $675,000 after purchasing an additional 7,601 shares during the last quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in W.R. Berkley by 12.1% in the 2nd quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 4,088 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $300,000 after purchasing an additional 442 shares during the period. Finally, Harbour Investments Inc. grew its position in W.R. Berkley by 38.1% in the 2nd quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. now owns 6,297 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $463,000 after purchasing an additional 1,737 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 68.82% of the company’s stock.

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.