W.R. Berkley Corporation $WRB Shares Sold by Natixis Advisors LLC

Natixis Advisors LLC cut its position in shares of W.R. Berkley Corporation (NYSE:WRB) by 5.4% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 1,159,767 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 65,996 shares during the quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC owned about 0.31% of W.R. Berkley worth $81,323,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Entrust Financial LLC acquired a new stake in W.R. Berkley during the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Compass Financial Services Inc acquired a new stake in W.R. Berkley during the third quarter worth about $26,000. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. increased its stake in W.R. Berkley by 140.0% during the fourth quarter. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. now owns 360 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 210 shares during the last quarter. Triumph Capital Management acquired a new stake in W.R. Berkley during the third quarter worth about $35,000. Finally, Physician Wealth Advisors Inc. grew its stake in shares of W.R. Berkley by 40.2% in the third quarter. Physician Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 523 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $40,000 after buying an additional 150 shares in the last quarter. 68.82% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

W.R. Berkley Price Performance

WRB stock opened at $65.24 on Wednesday. W.R. Berkley Corporation has a 1 year low of $62.87 and a 1 year high of $78.96. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $66.31 and a 200-day simple moving average of $69.10. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 0.36 and a current ratio of 0.36. The firm has a market cap of $24.29 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.82, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.04 and a beta of 0.30.

W.R. Berkley (NYSE:WRB) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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 return on equity of 18.92% and a net margin of 12.64%.The firm had revenue of $3.69 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.18 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.01 EPS. W.R. Berkley’s quarterly revenue was up 1.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts predict that W.R. Berkley Corporation will post 4.67 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on WRB shares. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on W.R. Berkley from $73.00 to $72.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 6th. Evercore reiterated an “underperform” rating on shares of W.R. Berkley in a research note on Monday, March 9th. Cantor Fitzgerald lowered W.R. Berkley from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their target price for the company from $75.00 to $71.00 in a research note on Thursday, April 9th. Brean Capital lowered W.R. Berkley from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $73.00 target price for the company. in a research note on Wednesday, March 25th. Finally, Weiss Ratings lowered W.R. Berkley from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 20th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Reduce” and a consensus price target of $68.81.

W.R. Berkley 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.