Sumitomo Insurance Co Mitsui Buys 164,786 Shares of W.R. Berkley (NYSE:WRB) Stock

W.R. Berkley Corporation (NYSE:WRB) major shareholder Sumitomo Insurance Co Mitsui bought 164,786 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 24th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $70.81 per share, for a total transaction of $11,668,496.66. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 58,053,406 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,110,761,678.86. This represents a 0.28% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Large shareholders that own at least 10% of a company’s stock are required to disclose their sales and purchases with the SEC.

W.R. Berkley Price Performance

Shares of W.R. Berkley stock opened at $71.56 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.37, a quick ratio of 0.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. W.R. Berkley Corporation has a 12 month low of $60.68 and a 12 month high of $78.96. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $69.58 and a 200 day moving average of $72.19. The firm has a market cap of $27.19 billion, a PE ratio of 16.08, a PEG ratio of 3.00 and a beta of 0.37.

W.R. Berkley (NYSE:WRB) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, January 26th. The insurance provider reported $1.13 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate 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 period last year, the company earned $1.13 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts expect 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 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 is Monday, February 23rd. This represents a $0.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.5%. W.R. Berkley’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 8.09%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages recently commented on WRB. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of W.R. Berkley in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. UBS Group set a $71.00 price objective on W.R. Berkley in a research report on Monday, February 2nd. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $73.00 target price on shares of W.R. Berkley in a report on Wednesday, January 7th. Truist Financial set a $80.00 price target on W.R. Berkley and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 27th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price target on W.R. Berkley from $73.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 6th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have assigned a Hold rating and four have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, W.R. Berkley currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $69.67.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On W.R. Berkley

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Mitsui Sumitomo Insurance Co. Ltd. bought a new position in W.R. Berkley in the 4th quarter valued at $3,542,919,000. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. bought a new position in shares of W.R. Berkley in the third quarter worth about $682,816,000. Norges Bank purchased a new position in W.R. Berkley in the 4th quarter worth about $435,752,000. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. lifted its holdings in W.R. Berkley by 6,503.1% during the 2nd quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. now owns 2,561,230 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $188,174,000 after buying an additional 2,601,230 shares in the last quarter. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its position in W.R. Berkley by 35,572.5% in the 4th quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 2,219,902 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $155,660,000 after buying an additional 2,213,679 shares during the period. 68.82% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.