Insider Buying: W.R. Berkley (NYSE:WRB) Major Shareholder Buys 195,000 Shares of Stock

W.R. Berkley Corporation (NYSE:WRB) major shareholder Sumitomo Insurance Co Mitsui acquired 195,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 8th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $70.16 per share, for a total transaction of $13,681,200.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the insider directly owned 51,640,463 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,623,094,884.08. This represents a 0.38% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Major shareholders that own more than 10% of a company’s stock are required to disclose their transactions with the SEC.

W.R. Berkley Stock Down 2.5%

Shares of NYSE:WRB traded down $1.79 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $68.45. 2,476,822 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,459,150. 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 12 month low of $55.97 and a 12 month high of $78.96. The company has a market cap of $26.01 billion, a PE ratio of 14.38, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.61 and a beta of 0.39. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $72.41 and a 200-day moving average price of $72.33.

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

W.R. Berkley Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 29th. Investors of record on Monday, December 15th were issued a dividend of $0.09 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 15th. This represents a $0.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.5%. W.R. Berkley’s dividend payout ratio is 7.56%.

Institutional Trading of W.R. Berkley

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Brighton Jones LLC grew its position in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 21,737 shares during the period. Baird Financial Group Inc. grew its holdings in W.R. Berkley by 1.8% during the first quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. now owns 7,997 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $569,000 after purchasing an additional 141 shares during the period. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC increased its position in W.R. Berkley by 10.3% in the first quarter. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC now owns 5,430 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $386,000 after buying an additional 506 shares during the last quarter. United Services Automobile Association purchased a new stake in W.R. Berkley in the first quarter worth $488,000. Finally, Empowered Funds LLC raised its stake in shares of W.R. Berkley by 9.7% in 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. Institutional investors own 68.82% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $73.00 price objective on shares of W.R. Berkley in a report on Wednesday. UBS Group reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $87.00 price target on shares of W.R. Berkley in a research report on Friday, November 7th. BMO Capital Markets downgraded shares of W.R. Berkley from a “market perform” rating to an “underperform” rating and set a $64.00 price objective for the company. in a research report on Wednesday, October 22nd. Mizuho set a $67.00 price objective on shares of W.R. Berkley and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, December 15th. Finally, Truist Financial set a $84.00 target price on W.R. Berkley and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 21st. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have given a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, W.R. Berkley has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $72.87.

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.