Allstate Corp Makes New $860,000 Investment in W.R. Berkley Corporation $WRB

Allstate Corp purchased a new position in W.R. Berkley Corporation (NYSE:WRB) during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 11,225 shares of the insurance provider’s stock, valued at approximately $860,000.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC increased its stake in W.R. Berkley by 177.7% in the third quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 143,518 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $11,161,000 after acquiring an additional 91,832 shares during the last quarter. Inspire Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of W.R. Berkley by 3.5% in the 3rd quarter. Inspire Advisors LLC now owns 14,220 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $1,090,000 after purchasing an additional 479 shares in the last quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of W.R. Berkley by 7.0% during the 3rd quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 4,373 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $335,000 after purchasing an additional 285 shares during the last quarter. Insight Inv LLC raised its holdings in shares of W.R. Berkley by 8.4% during the 3rd quarter. Insight Inv LLC now owns 34,730 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $2,661,000 after buying an additional 2,698 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB lifted its position in W.R. Berkley by 53.2% in the 3rd quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 2,221 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $170,000 after buying an additional 771 shares during the last quarter. 68.82% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at W.R. Berkley

In related news, major shareholder Sumitomo Insurance Co L. Mitsui bought 320,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 21st. The shares were purchased at an average price of $67.48 per share, with a total value of $21,593,600.00. Following the purchase, the insider owned 53,891,504 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,636,598,689.92. This trade represents a 0.60% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Over the last three months, insiders have bought 5,084,916 shares of company stock valued at $352,173,470. Company insiders own 23.30% of the company’s stock.

W.R. Berkley News Roundup

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

• Positive Sentiment: Major shareholder Sumitomo/Mitsui bought a sizeable block of Berkley shares over Jan. 20–21 (about 630k shares total, roughly $42.6M at ~$67.5–67.8 per share), increasing its stake and signaling institutional confidence/support for the stock. Mitsui Sumitomo buys Berkley (WRB) shares worth $42.6m SEC Ownership Filing
• Neutral Sentiment: Zacks published a preview of Wall Street projections for WRB’s Q4 metrics — useful context for investors but not a direct catalyst until actual quarterly results are released. Insights Into W.R. Berkley (WRB) Q4
• Neutral Sentiment: Recent commentary assessing Berkley’s valuation after an expanded share buyback plan highlights buyback support for per‑share metrics, but the net market impact depends on execution and timing. Assessing W. R. Berkley (WRB) Valuation After Its Expanded Share Buyback Plan
• Negative Sentiment: TD Cowen reiterated a “sell” rating and cut its price target sharply to $55 from $77, implying notable downside from current levels; that analyst action likely pressured sentiment and contributed to the stock’s decline. TD Cowen downgrades W R Berkley (WRB)

W.R. Berkley Trading Down 0.3%

NYSE WRB opened at $67.50 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $25.65 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.18, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.51 and a beta of 0.39. W.R. Berkley Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $56.86 and a fifty-two week high of $78.96. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $71.34 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $72.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 0.37 and a current ratio of 0.37.

W.R. Berkley (NYSE:WRB) last posted its earnings results on Monday, October 20th. The insurance provider reported $1.10 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.07 by $0.03. W.R. Berkley had a return on equity of 18.86% and a net margin of 13.01%.The firm had revenue of $3.77 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.16 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.93 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 10.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts forecast that W.R. Berkley Corporation will post 4.33 earnings per share for the current year.

W.R. Berkley Dividend Announcement

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have commented on WRB shares. Cantor Fitzgerald reduced their price target on shares of W.R. Berkley from $78.00 to $76.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 14th. TD Cowen lowered shares of W.R. Berkley from a “buy” rating to a “sell” rating and reduced their target price for the company from $77.00 to $55.00 in a report on Tuesday. Mizuho set a $69.00 target price on shares of W.R. Berkley in a research report on Wednesday, January 14th. Barclays reaffirmed an “underweight” rating and set a $64.00 price objective (down from $73.00) on shares of W.R. Berkley in a research note on Thursday, January 8th. Finally, Morgan Stanley set a $75.00 target price on W.R. Berkley in a research note on Tuesday, December 16th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, ten have given a Hold rating and four have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, W.R. Berkley currently has an average rating of “Reduce” and an average price target of $71.47.

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.