Q1 EPS Estimates for W.R. Berkley Cut by Zacks Research

W.R. Berkley Corporation (NYSE:WRB) – Stock analysts at Zacks Research reduced their Q1 2026 earnings per share estimates for shares of W.R. Berkley in a report issued on Friday, March 6th. Zacks Research analyst Team now anticipates that the insurance provider will post earnings of $1.14 per share for the quarter, down from their previous estimate of $1.15. The consensus estimate for W.R. Berkley’s current full-year earnings is $4.33 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for W.R. Berkley’s FY2026 earnings at $4.55 EPS, Q1 2027 earnings at $1.15 EPS, Q2 2027 earnings at $1.21 EPS, Q3 2027 earnings at $1.08 EPS, FY2027 earnings at $4.75 EPS and FY2028 earnings at $4.90 EPS.

W.R. Berkley (NYSE:WRB) last released its quarterly 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 firm had revenue of $3.18 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.18 billion. W.R. Berkley had a return on equity of 18.17% and a net margin of 12.10%.The company’s quarterly revenue was up 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.13 EPS.

Other equities analysts have also issued reports about the stock. Argus lowered their price objective on shares of W.R. Berkley from $82.00 to $76.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, February 2nd. UBS Group set a $71.00 price target on shares of W.R. Berkley in a report on Monday, February 2nd. Wall Street Zen cut W.R. Berkley from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Saturday. Morgan Stanley set a $73.00 price target on W.R. Berkley in a research note on Wednesday, January 28th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their target price on W.R. Berkley from $73.00 to $76.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 6th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have issued a Hold rating and four have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, W.R. Berkley currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $69.67.

W.R. Berkley Stock Down 2.4%

WRB opened at $68.21 on Monday. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $69.65 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $72.19. W.R. Berkley has a 52 week low of $60.68 and a 52 week high of $78.96. The company has a market cap of $25.54 billion, a PE ratio of 15.33, a P/E/G ratio of 2.75 and a beta of 0.35. The company has a quick ratio of 0.37, a current ratio of 0.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29.

W.R. Berkley Announces Dividend

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

Insider Activity at W.R. Berkley

In other W.R. Berkley news, major shareholder Sumitomo Insurance Co L. Mitsui acquired 112,176 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 3rd. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $72.20 per share, with a total value of $8,099,107.20. Following the purchase, the insider owned 58,780,450 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,243,948,490. The trade was a 0.19% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In the last 90 days, insiders have bought 9,933,862 shares of company stock valued at $688,134,108. 23.00% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Compass Financial Services Inc purchased a new stake in W.R. Berkley in the third quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Entrust Financial LLC purchased a new stake in shares of W.R. Berkley during the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. grew its stake in shares of W.R. Berkley by 140.0% during the 4th quarter. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. now owns 360 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 210 shares during the period. Twin Peaks Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of W.R. Berkley in the 2nd quarter worth $27,000. Finally, DV Equities LLC acquired a new position in W.R. Berkley in the fourth quarter valued at $29,000. 68.82% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.