Sumitomo Insurance Co Mitsui Buys 281,386 Shares of W.R. Berkley (NYSE:WRB) Stock

W.R. Berkley Corporation (NYSE:WRB) major shareholder Sumitomo Insurance Co Mitsui bought 281,386 shares of W.R. Berkley stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 17th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $71.19 per share, for a total transaction of $20,031,869.34. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 56,878,038 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,049,147,525.22. This trade represents a 0.50% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Large shareholders that own more than 10% of a company’s shares are required to disclose their sales and purchases with the SEC.

W.R. Berkley Stock Performance

Shares of W.R. Berkley stock opened at $70.42 on Friday. 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 stock has a market capitalization of $26.76 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.83, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.96 and a beta of 0.37. The business has a 50-day moving average of $69.36 and a 200 day moving average of $72.16. W.R. Berkley Corporation has a 12 month low of $59.55 and a 12 month high of $78.96.

W.R. Berkley (NYSE:WRB) last released its earnings results on Monday, January 26th. The insurance provider reported $1.13 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.14 by ($0.01). W.R. Berkley had a return on equity of 18.35% and a net margin of 12.10%.The firm had revenue of $3.18 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.18 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.13 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that W.R. Berkley Corporation will post 4.33 earnings per share for the current year.

W.R. Berkley Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 4th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 23rd will be given a dividend of $0.09 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, February 23rd. This represents a $0.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.5%. W.R. Berkley’s payout ratio is 8.09%.

Key Stories Impacting W.R. Berkley

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

• Positive Sentiment: Sumitomo Insurance (a >10% holder) purchased a large block of WRB shares across Feb. 17–18 (total ~566,386 shares, ~0.5% increase; ~$40M combined), signaling confidence from a major strategic investor. SEC filing: SEC Filing
• Positive Sentiment: The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.09 (ex‑dividend Feb. 23; payable Mar. 4), a modest cash return (approx. 0.5% yield) that supports income‑oriented holders. (Reported in recent coverage.)
• Neutral Sentiment: Zacks Research raised its Q4 2027 EPS estimate for WRB to $1.31 from $1.23 — a one‑quarter upside revision that is unlikely by itself to materially move valuation.
• Neutral Sentiment: MarketWatch flagged that WRB underperformed its peers on Tuesday despite daily gains, suggesting sector rotation or relative valuation shifts are affecting short‑term flows. Article
• Negative Sentiment: Zacks Research issued multiple downward revisions across near‑term quarters and trimmed FY2026 and FY2027 EPS (FY2026 to $4.56, FY2027 to $4.78), reflecting weaker forward outlook assumptions and creating downside risk for consensus estimates and forward guidance expectations.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of WRB. Mcguire Capital Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in W.R. Berkley in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $88,000. Hamilton Wealth LLC grew its holdings in shares of W.R. Berkley by 18.2% during the 4th quarter. Hamilton Wealth LLC now owns 3,890 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $273,000 after purchasing an additional 600 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. increased its position in W.R. Berkley by 0.4% during the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 4,913,337 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $344,523,000 after purchasing an additional 20,538 shares in the last quarter. Strive Financial Group LLC purchased a new position in W.R. Berkley in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $263,000. Finally, Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV lifted its position in W.R. Berkley by 1.7% during the fourth quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV now owns 192,866 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $13,524,000 after buying an additional 3,134 shares in the last quarter. 68.82% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on WRB shares. Morgan Stanley set a $73.00 target price on shares of W.R. Berkley in a research note on Wednesday, January 28th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of W.R. Berkley in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. Bank of America decreased their price target on W.R. Berkley from $69.00 to $66.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 27th. Barclays restated an “underweight” rating and issued a $64.00 price objective (down previously from $73.00) on shares of W.R. Berkley in a research report on Thursday, January 8th. Finally, Truist Financial set a $80.00 price objective on W.R. Berkley and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 27th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have given a Hold rating and four have issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, W.R. Berkley presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $69.67.

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.