Stance Capital LLC Sells 15,900 Shares of W.R. Berkley Corporation $WRB

Stance Capital LLC reduced its stake in shares of W.R. Berkley Corporation (NYSE:WRB) by 33.0% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 32,219 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 15,900 shares during the period. Stance Capital LLC’s holdings in W.R. Berkley were worth $2,259,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Entrust Financial LLC bought a new stake in W.R. Berkley during the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. boosted its position in shares of W.R. Berkley by 140.0% in the fourth quarter. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. now owns 360 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 210 shares during the period. DV Equities LLC purchased a new stake in shares of W.R. Berkley in the fourth quarter worth $29,000. Triumph Capital Management bought a new stake in shares of W.R. Berkley during the 3rd quarter valued at $35,000. Finally, Quarry LP bought a new stake in shares of W.R. Berkley during the 4th quarter valued at $39,000. 68.82% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Cantor Fitzgerald downgraded shares of W.R. Berkley from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and dropped their target price for the stock from $75.00 to $71.00 in a report on Thursday, April 9th. Bank of America decreased their price target on W.R. Berkley from $68.00 to $67.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 14th. Weiss Ratings downgraded W.R. Berkley from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 20th. Wall Street Zen raised W.R. Berkley from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, April 25th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut W.R. Berkley from an “overweight” rating to an “underweight” rating and cut their target price for the stock from $64.00 to $58.00 in a research report on Monday, June 8th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have issued a Hold rating and four have issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Reduce” and a consensus price target of $68.31.

W.R. Berkley Stock Performance

WRB opened at $67.27 on Friday. 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 stock has a market capitalization of $25.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.25, a PEG ratio of 3.18 and a beta of 0.30. The company has a fifty day moving average of $66.74 and a 200 day moving average of $68.16. W.R. Berkley Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $62.87 and a fifty-two week high of $78.96.

W.R. Berkley (NYSE:WRB) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 21st. The insurance provider reported $1.30 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 business had revenue of $3.69 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.18 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.01 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 1.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that W.R. Berkley Corporation will post 4.67 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

W.R. Berkley Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 2nd. Investors of record on Tuesday, June 23rd will be given a $0.10 dividend. This is an increase from W.R. Berkley’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.09. This represents a $0.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.6%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, June 23rd. W.R. Berkley’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 7.63%.

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.