Sumitomo Insurance Co Mitsui Purchases 325,000 Shares of W.R. Berkley (NYSE:WRB) Stock

W.R. Berkley Corporation (NYSE:WRB) major shareholder Sumitomo Insurance Co Mitsui purchased 325,000 shares of W.R. Berkley stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 13th. The shares were bought at an average price of $68.03 per share, with a total value of $22,109,750.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 52,496,504 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,571,337,167.12. This trade represents a 0.62% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 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 Stock Performance

WRB opened at $68.71 on Friday. W.R. Berkley Corporation has a 1-year low of $56.86 and a 1-year high of $78.96. The stock has a market cap of $26.11 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.44, a P/E/G ratio of 2.57 and a beta of 0.39. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $72.00 and its 200 day simple moving average is $72.23. 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 (NYSE:WRB) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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. The firm had revenue of $3.77 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.16 billion. W.R. Berkley had a return on equity of 18.86% and a net margin of 13.01%.W.R. Berkley’s revenue was up 10.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.93 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that W.R. Berkley Corporation will post 4.33 EPS for the current fiscal year.

W.R. Berkley Announces Dividend

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

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have issued reports on WRB. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of W.R. Berkley in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Mizuho set a $69.00 price objective on shares of W.R. Berkley in a research note on Wednesday. Truist Financial set a $84.00 target price on W.R. Berkley and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 21st. Cantor Fitzgerald dropped their price target on W.R. Berkley from $78.00 to $76.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company set a $68.00 price target on W.R. Berkley and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have issued a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $73.00.

W.R. Berkley News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting W.R. Berkley this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Major shareholder Sumitomo (Mitsui) bought large blocks of WRB over Jan. 12–14 (approximately 811,041 shares in total), spending roughly $55.6M aggregate — a clear insider vote of confidence that increases their stake and signals long-term support. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Multiple filings confirm the buys (SEC ownership filing shows the purchases and updated stake size); these are disclosed increases of less than 1% each but cumulatively meaningful for share count. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Cantor Fitzgerald trimmed its price target from $78 to $76 but kept an “overweight” rating — a modest reduction in upside but still a positive stance from that analyst. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Technicals and analyst mix may be weighing on the stock: WRB is trading below its 50- and 200-day moving averages (~$72) and analyst coverage remains mixed (average target near $73, several holds and a few underweights), creating limited near-term upside despite insider buying.

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.