Sumitomo Insurance Co Mitsui Buys 250,221 Shares of W.R. Berkley (NYSE:WRB) Stock

W.R. Berkley Corporation (NYSE:WRB) major shareholder Sumitomo Insurance Co Mitsui bought 250,221 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 2nd. The shares were purchased at an average price of $67.75 per share, for a total transaction of $16,952,472.75. Following the transaction, the insider owned 56,353,656 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,817,960,194. The trade was a 0.45% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Major shareholders that own at least 10% of a company’s shares are required to disclose their transactions with the SEC.

W.R. Berkley Stock Performance

W.R. Berkley stock opened at $71.28 on Friday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $69.35 and a 200 day moving average price of $72.03. 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 52 week low of $59.55 and a 52 week high of $78.96. The firm has a market capitalization of $27.09 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.02, a PEG ratio of 2.91 and a beta of 0.37.

W.R. Berkley (NYSE:WRB) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, January 26th. The insurance provider reported $1.13 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.14 by ($0.01). The business had revenue of $3.18 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.18 billion. W.R. Berkley had a net margin of 12.10% and a return on equity of 18.35%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.13 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate 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 declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 29th. Investors of record on Monday, December 15th were given a dividend of $0.09 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend 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 8.09%.

Institutional Trading of W.R. Berkley

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of WRB. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. purchased a new position in shares of W.R. Berkley in the third quarter valued at $682,816,000. Norges Bank purchased a new position in W.R. Berkley in the 2nd quarter valued at about $367,921,000. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. increased its position in shares of W.R. Berkley by 6,503.1% during the second quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. now owns 2,561,230 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $188,174,000 after acquiring an additional 2,601,230 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. lifted its stake in shares of W.R. Berkley by 33.4% in the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 4,892,799 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $374,886,000 after acquiring an additional 1,224,363 shares in the last quarter. Finally, PFA Pension Forsikringsaktieselskab purchased a new position in W.R. Berkley in the fourth quarter valued at about $65,233,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 68.82% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on W.R. Berkley from $68.00 to $66.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 27th. Barclays reaffirmed an “underweight” rating and issued a $64.00 price objective (down from $73.00) on shares of W.R. Berkley in a research note on Thursday, January 8th. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their target price on shares of W.R. Berkley from $75.00 to $70.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 27th. Bank of America reduced their price target on shares of W.R. Berkley from $69.00 to $66.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 27th. Finally, Argus dropped their price objective on shares of W.R. Berkley from $82.00 to $76.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have given a Hold rating and four have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus 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.