Zacks Research Lowers Earnings Estimates for W.R. Berkley

W.R. Berkley Corporation (NYSE:WRB) – Equities researchers at Zacks Research dropped their FY2028 EPS estimates for W.R. Berkley in a note issued to investors on Friday, July 3rd. Zacks Research analyst Team now expects that the insurance provider will post earnings per share of $5.07 for the year, down from their previous forecast of $5.08. The consensus estimate for W.R. Berkley’s current full-year earnings is $4.67 per share.

Several other analysts have also recently issued reports on the company. Barclays restated an “underweight” rating and issued a $62.00 target price (down from $64.00) on shares of W.R. Berkley in a report on Friday, June 12th. Argus lowered shares of W.R. Berkley from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, April 27th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of W.R. Berkley from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, April 25th. Truist Financial decreased their target price on shares of W.R. Berkley from $80.00 to $78.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company downgraded shares of W.R. Berkley from an “overweight” rating to an “underweight” rating and cut their price target for the stock from $64.00 to $58.00 in a report on Monday, June 8th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, ten have assigned a Hold rating and five have issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, W.R. Berkley currently has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and an average price target of $68.50.

W.R. Berkley Trading Up 0.9%

WRB opened at $71.54 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $26.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.16, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.35 and a beta of 0.29. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $67.67 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $68.25. W.R. Berkley has a 1-year low of $62.87 and a 1-year high of $78.96. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 0.36 and a quick ratio of 0.36.

W.R. Berkley (NYSE:WRB) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 21st. The insurance provider reported $1.30 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.13 by $0.17. W.R. Berkley had a net margin of 12.64% and a return on equity of 18.92%. The firm had revenue of $3.69 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.18 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.01 EPS. W.R. Berkley’s quarterly revenue was up 1.3% compared to the same quarter last year.

W.R. Berkley Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 2nd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, June 23rd were issued a dividend of $0.10 per share. This is a boost from W.R. Berkley’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.09. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, June 23rd. This represents a $0.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.6%. W.R. Berkley’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 8.47%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of WRB. Stance Capital LLC grew its holdings in W.R. Berkley by 376.1% during the 3rd quarter. Stance Capital LLC now owns 48,119 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $3,687,000 after acquiring an additional 38,013 shares in the last quarter. Stoneridge Investment Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of W.R. Berkley in the 4th quarter valued at $2,801,000. Generali Asset Management SPA SGR purchased a new stake in shares of W.R. Berkley during the 4th quarter worth $1,630,000. Citadel Investment Advisory Inc. grew its stake in shares of W.R. Berkley by 105.4% during the fourth quarter. Citadel Investment Advisory Inc. now owns 29,693 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $2,082,000 after purchasing an additional 15,240 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Eagle Rock Investment Company LLC increased its holdings in W.R. Berkley by 18.8% in the fourth quarter. Eagle Rock Investment Company LLC now owns 118,876 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $8,336,000 after buying an additional 18,820 shares during the last quarter. 68.82% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.