W.R. Berkley (NYSE:WRB) Price Target Lowered to $62.00 at Barclays

W.R. Berkley (NYSE:WRB) had its target price lowered by Barclays from $64.00 to $62.00 in a report released on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an underweight rating on the insurance provider’s stock.

A number of other brokerages have also recently issued reports on WRB. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $73.00 target price on shares of W.R. Berkley in a research report on Wednesday, January 7th. Mizuho decreased their target price on W.R. Berkley from $69.00 to $67.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 27th. Wall Street Zen cut W.R. Berkley from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Sunday, March 29th. Evercore reaffirmed an “underperform” rating on shares of W.R. Berkley in a research report on Monday, March 9th. Finally, Brean Capital cut W.R. Berkley from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $73.00 target price for the company. in a research report on Wednesday, March 25th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, ten have given a Hold rating and four have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $68.94.

W.R. Berkley Stock Up 0.7%

Shares of W.R. Berkley stock opened at $67.15 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $25.15 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.09, a PEG ratio of 2.58 and a beta of 0.37. The company has a quick ratio of 0.37, a current ratio of 0.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $68.73 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $71.30. W.R. Berkley has a 12-month low of $63.65 and a 12-month high of $78.96.

W.R. Berkley (NYSE:WRB) last announced its earnings results on Monday, January 26th. The insurance provider reported $1.13 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.14 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $3.18 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.18 billion. W.R. Berkley had a return on equity of 18.17% and a net margin of 12.10%.The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.13 EPS. Equities analysts expect that W.R. Berkley will post 4.33 earnings per share for the current year.

W.R. Berkley Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 4th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 23rd were given a $0.09 dividend. This represents a $0.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 23rd. W.R. Berkley’s dividend payout ratio is currently 8.09%.

Insider Buying and Selling at W.R. Berkley

In other W.R. Berkley news, major shareholder Sumitomo Insurance Co L. Mitsui acquired 112,176 shares of W.R. Berkley stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 3rd. The stock was bought at an average cost of $72.20 per share, with a total value of $8,099,107.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 58,780,450 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,243,948,490. The trade was a 0.19% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders purchased 7,099,987 shares of company stock valued at $489,800,136 over the last three months. 23.30% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On W.R. Berkley

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of WRB. Compass Financial Services Inc bought a new position in W.R. Berkley in the third quarter worth $26,000. Entrust Financial LLC bought a new position in W.R. Berkley in the fourth quarter worth $25,000. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. lifted its position in W.R. Berkley by 140.0% in the fourth quarter. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. now owns 360 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 210 shares during the period. DV Equities LLC bought a new position in W.R. Berkley in the fourth quarter worth $29,000. Finally, Triumph Capital Management bought a new position in W.R. Berkley in the third quarter worth $35,000. 68.82% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Key Stories Impacting W.R. Berkley

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

• Positive Sentiment: Zacks Research raised several near- and medium-term EPS forecasts (small lifts to Q3 2026, Q3 2027, Q4 2026/2027 and FY2026/FY2028; slight reduction to some quarters), implying incremental earnings tailwinds and supporting forward profit expectations. Zacks / MarketBeat note
• Positive Sentiment: A Seeking Alpha piece highlights W.R. Berkley’s baby bonds as “investment-grade income at a discount,” which can attract income-oriented investors and provide demand support for the stock and paper. Seeking Alpha: Baby Bonds
• Neutral Sentiment: A Globe and Mail summary notes analysts have conflicting views on financial names including WRB, underscoring mixed market sentiment rather than a clear directional catalyst. Globe and Mail: Analysts Conflicting
• Negative Sentiment: Barclays cut its price target to $62 and moved to an “underweight” stance — a materially negative signal that implies downside versus current levels and could pressure sentiment among institutional holders. Benzinga: Barclays PT cut
• Negative Sentiment: UBS trimmed its target to $69 and set a “neutral” rating, lowering upside from prior expectations and removing some buy-side enthusiasm. Benzinga: UBS PT cut
• Negative Sentiment: Morgan Stanley issued a pessimistic forecast for WRB, adding downside commentary that could weigh on sentiment among growth/value-focused investors. AmericanBankingNews: Morgan Stanley

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.