W.R. Berkley (NYSE:WRB) Major Shareholder Acquires $14,507,850.00 in Stock

W.R. Berkley Corporation (NYSE:WRB) major shareholder Sumitomo Insurance Co Mitsui purchased 205,000 shares of W.R. Berkley stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 29th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $70.77 per share, with a total value of $14,507,850.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the insider directly owned 50,091,511 shares in the company, valued at $3,544,976,233.47. This trade represents a 0.41% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Major shareholders that own 10% or more of a company’s shares are required to disclose their sales and purchases with the SEC.

W.R. Berkley Stock Performance

WRB stock traded up $0.19 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $70.76. 1,598,085 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,205,735. W.R. Berkley Corporation has a 12 month low of $55.97 and a 12 month high of $78.96. The company has a current ratio of 0.37, a quick ratio of 0.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. The firm has a market capitalization of $26.89 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.86, a P/E/G ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 0.37. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $73.15 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $72.55.

W.R. Berkley (NYSE:WRB) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, October 20th. The insurance provider reported $1.10 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.07 by $0.03. W.R. Berkley had a net margin of 13.01% and a return on equity of 18.86%. The business had revenue of $3.77 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.16 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.93 earnings per share. W.R. Berkley’s revenue was up 10.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts forecast that W.R. Berkley Corporation will post 4.33 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

W.R. Berkley Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 29th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.09 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 15th. This represents a $0.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.5%. W.R. Berkley’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 7.56%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Mizuho set a $67.00 price target on W.R. Berkley and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, December 15th. Wells Fargo & Company set a $66.00 target price on W.R. Berkley and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 21st. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their target price on shares of W.R. Berkley from $76.00 to $75.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, October 21st. Truist Financial set a $84.00 price target on W.R. Berkley and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 21st. Finally, UBS Group restated a “neutral” rating and set a $87.00 price objective on shares of W.R. Berkley in a research report on Friday, November 7th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, W.R. Berkley has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $73.93.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On W.R. Berkley

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Triumph Capital Management bought a new stake in W.R. Berkley during the 3rd quarter worth $35,000. Hudson Bay Capital Management LP boosted its stake in shares of W.R. Berkley by 2.2% during the third quarter. Hudson Bay Capital Management LP now owns 153,560 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $11,766,000 after purchasing an additional 3,335 shares in the last quarter. Tudor Investment Corp ET AL acquired a new stake in shares of W.R. Berkley during the third quarter valued at about $734,000. Allworth Financial LP grew its holdings in shares of W.R. Berkley by 4.8% during the third quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 3,328 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $255,000 after purchasing an additional 153 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Groupama Asset Managment acquired a new position in shares of W.R. Berkley in the third quarter valued at approximately $218,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 68.82% of the company’s stock.

W.R. Berkley Company 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.