W.R. Berkley (NYSE:WRB) Major Shareholder Sumitomo Insurance Co Mitsui Purchases 220,000 Shares

W.R. Berkley Corporation (NYSE:WRB) major shareholder Sumitomo Insurance Co Mitsui bought 220,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, December 26th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $70.56 per share, for a total transaction of $15,523,200.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the insider directly owned 49,886,511 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,519,992,216.16. This trade represents a 0.44% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Major shareholders that own more than 10% of a company’s stock are required to disclose their sales and purchases with the SEC.

W.R. Berkley Price Performance

W.R. Berkley stock traded up $0.19 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $70.76. 1,598,085 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,205,735. The firm has a market cap of $26.89 billion, a PE ratio of 14.86, a PEG ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 0.37. 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 company has a fifty day simple moving average of $73.15 and a 200-day simple moving average of $72.55. W.R. Berkley Corporation has a 12 month low of $55.97 and a 12 month high of $78.96.

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

W.R. Berkley Dividend Announcement

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

Institutional Trading of W.R. Berkley

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Compass Financial Services Inc bought a new position in shares of W.R. Berkley during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $26,000. Hilltop National Bank acquired a new position in shares of W.R. Berkley during the 2nd quarter valued at $27,000. Twin Peaks Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of W.R. Berkley during the 2nd quarter valued at $27,000. Elevation Point Wealth Partners LLC bought a new position in W.R. Berkley during the second quarter worth $34,000. Finally, Triumph Capital Management acquired a new stake in W.R. Berkley in the third quarter worth $35,000. 68.82% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently issued reports on WRB. BMO Capital Markets lowered shares of W.R. Berkley from a “market perform” rating to an “underperform” rating and set a $64.00 price target on the stock. in a research report on Wednesday, October 22nd. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their target price on W.R. Berkley from $76.00 to $75.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, October 21st. Mizuho set a $67.00 price target on W.R. Berkley and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, December 15th. Wells Fargo & Company set a $66.00 price objective on W.R. Berkley and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 21st. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald set a $78.00 target price on W.R. Berkley in a research report on Monday, October 27th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $73.93.

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.