W.R. Berkley (NYSE:WRB) Major Shareholder Buys $2,775,200.00 in Stock

W.R. Berkley Corporation (NYSE:WRB) major shareholder Sumitomo Insurance Co Mitsui purchased 40,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 9th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $69.38 per share, for a total transaction of $2,775,200.00. Following the purchase, the insider directly owned 56,498,656 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,919,876,753.28. This trade represents a 0.07% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible 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 Performance

Shares of NYSE WRB traded up $1.63 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $71.55. 2,447,920 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,340,822. W.R. Berkley Corporation has a twelve month low of $59.55 and a twelve month high of $78.96. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 0.37 and a quick ratio of 0.37. The firm has a market cap of $27.19 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.08, a PEG ratio of 2.92 and a beta of 0.37. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $69.05 and its 200-day moving average price is $72.11.

W.R. Berkley (NYSE:WRB) last announced its earnings results on Monday, January 26th. The insurance provider reported $1.13 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.14 by ($0.01). The business had revenue of $3.18 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate 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 was up 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.13 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that W.R. Berkley Corporation will post 4.33 EPS for the current year.

W.R. Berkley Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 29th. Investors of record on Monday, December 15th were given a $0.09 dividend. This represents a $0.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 15th. W.R. Berkley’s dividend payout ratio is currently 8.09%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Brighton Jones LLC raised its stake in W.R. Berkley by 75.6% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 50,503 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $2,955,000 after purchasing an additional 21,737 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC raised 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 valued at $2,419,000 after buying an additional 3,013 shares during the period. Acadian Asset Management LLC raised its position in W.R. Berkley by 399.0% during the first quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 9,506 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $675,000 after buying an additional 7,601 shares during the period. US Bancorp DE lifted its stake in W.R. Berkley by 4.4% in the 2nd quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 19,980 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $1,468,000 after acquiring an additional 849 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Blair William & Co. IL boosted its position in W.R. Berkley by 3.5% during the 2nd quarter. Blair William & Co. IL now owns 9,409 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $691,000 after acquiring an additional 319 shares during the period. 68.82% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages recently commented on WRB. Mizuho dropped their target price on W.R. Berkley from $69.00 to $67.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 27th. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their price target on W.R. Berkley from $75.00 to $70.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 27th. Argus dropped their price objective on W.R. Berkley from $82.00 to $76.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, February 2nd. Morgan Stanley set a $73.00 price objective on W.R. Berkley in a report on Wednesday, January 28th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $73.00 target price on shares of W.R. Berkley in a report on Wednesday, January 7th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have given a Hold rating and four have given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $69.67.

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.