W.R. Berkley (NYSE:WRB) Given New $83.00 Price Target at Truist Financial

W.R. Berkley (NYSE:WRB) had its target price hoisted by Truist Financial from $78.00 to $83.00 in a research report released on Tuesday morning,Benzinga reports. They currently have a buy rating on the insurance provider’s stock.

A number of other research firms have also weighed in on WRB. Brean Capital lowered W.R. Berkley from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $73.00 price objective for the company. in a research note on Wednesday, March 25th. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of W.R. Berkley from $72.00 to $75.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, July 6th. Wolfe Research cut shares of W.R. Berkley from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 1st. Argus lowered shares of W.R. Berkley from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, April 27th. Finally, UBS Group set a $68.00 price objective on shares of W.R. Berkley and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, April 27th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have issued a Hold rating and six have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and a consensus target price of $70.44.

W.R. Berkley Trading Down 0.5%

NYSE WRB opened at $72.39 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $26.95 billion, a PE ratio of 14.86, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.45 and a beta of 0.29. W.R. Berkley has a 1-year low of $62.87 and a 1-year high of $78.96. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $68.72 and a 200-day moving average of $68.35. The company has a current ratio of 0.36, a quick ratio of 0.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29.

W.R. Berkley (NYSE:WRB) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, July 20th. The insurance provider reported $1.27 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.08 by $0.19. The business had revenue of $3.72 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.28 billion. W.R. Berkley had a return on equity of 19.49% and a net margin of 12.94%.W.R. Berkley’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.05 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that W.R. Berkley will post 4.66 EPS for the current year.

W.R. Berkley Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 2nd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 23rd were issued a dividend of $0.10 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, June 23rd. This is a positive change from W.R. Berkley’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.09. This represents a $0.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.6%. W.R. Berkley’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 8.21%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On W.R. Berkley

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Mitsui Sumitomo Insurance Co. Ltd. bought a new position in shares of W.R. Berkley in the fourth quarter worth approximately $3,542,919,000. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of W.R. Berkley by 0.8% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 37,033,581 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $2,596,795,000 after acquiring an additional 309,828 shares during the period. State Street Corp increased its position in shares of W.R. Berkley by 1.0% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 14,921,114 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $1,143,256,000 after purchasing an additional 149,605 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in W.R. Berkley during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $435,752,000. Finally, Invesco Ltd. increased its stake in shares of W.R. Berkley by 0.4% in 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. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 68.82% of the company’s stock.

More W.R. Berkley News

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

• Positive Sentiment: WRB beat Q2 earnings expectations and posted better-than-expected revenue, suggesting solid underlying business momentum and stronger-than-anticipated underwriting results.
• Positive Sentiment: The quarter benefited from premium growth, higher investment income, and lower catastrophe losses, all of which are favorable for insurers’ profitability.
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts turned more constructive after the report, with Truist raising its price target to $83 and maintaining a buy rating, while Mizuho also lifted its target to $74.
• Neutral Sentiment: Some coverage noted that revenue missed certain Wall Street expectations in a separate headline, but the earnings beat and strong insurance fundamentals appear to be outweighing that concern.

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.