W.R. Berkley (NYSE:WRB) Major Shareholder Sumitomo Insurance Co Mitsui Acquires 40,000 Shares of Stock

W.R. Berkley Corporation (NYSE:WRB) major shareholder Sumitomo Insurance Co Mitsui bought 40,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 3rd. The stock was purchased at an average price of $68.64 per share, for a total transaction of $2,745,600.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 56,393,656 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,870,860,547.84. This represents a 0.07% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Large shareholders that own 10% or more of a company’s stock are required to disclose their sales and purchases with the SEC.

W.R. Berkley Stock Up 1.4%

Shares of WRB opened at $70.15 on Thursday. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $69.48 and a 200 day moving average price of $72.04. W.R. Berkley Corporation has a one year low of $59.55 and a one year high of $78.96. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 0.37 and a current ratio of 0.37. The stock has a market capitalization of $26.66 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.76, a PEG ratio of 2.87 and a beta of 0.37.

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 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 business had revenue of $3.18 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.18 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.13 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts forecast that W.R. Berkley Corporation will post 4.33 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

W.R. Berkley Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 29th. Investors of record on Monday, December 15th were paid a dividend of $0.09 per share. This represents a $0.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 15th. W.R. Berkley’s dividend payout ratio is currently 8.09%.

Institutional Trading of W.R. Berkley

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in shares of W.R. Berkley by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 37,033,581 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $2,596,795,000 after acquiring an additional 309,828 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp lifted its holdings in shares of W.R. Berkley by 1.0% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 14,921,114 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $1,143,256,000 after acquiring an additional 149,605 shares during the last quarter. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. purchased a new position in shares of W.R. Berkley during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $682,816,000. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in W.R. Berkley by 3.7% in the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 8,189,248 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $599,271,000 after purchasing an additional 289,172 shares during the last quarter. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its position in W.R. Berkley by 8.6% in the second quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 7,274,234 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $534,438,000 after purchasing an additional 577,873 shares during the period. 68.82% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their target price on shares of W.R. Berkley from $75.00 to $70.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 27th. Mizuho reduced their price objective on W.R. Berkley from $69.00 to $67.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 27th. Bank of America lowered their price objective on W.R. Berkley from $69.00 to $66.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 27th. Truist Financial set a $80.00 target price on W.R. Berkley and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 27th. Finally, Barclays reiterated an “underweight” rating and set a $64.00 price target (down previously from $73.00) on shares of W.R. Berkley in a report on Thursday, January 8th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have issued a Hold rating and four have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, W.R. Berkley has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price 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.