DOWLING & PARTN Raises Earnings Estimates for W.R. Berkley

W.R. Berkley Corporation (NYSE:WRB) – Equities researchers at DOWLING & PARTN upped their FY2026 earnings per share (EPS) estimates for shares of W.R. Berkley in a research note issued to investors on Friday, July 24th. DOWLING & PARTN analyst B. Sullivan now forecasts that the insurance provider will post earnings of $4.85 per share for the year, up from their previous forecast of $4.75. The consensus estimate for W.R. Berkley’s current full-year earnings is $4.75 per share. DOWLING & PARTN also issued estimates for W.R. Berkley’s FY2028 earnings at $5.20 EPS.

Several other analysts have also recently weighed in on WRB. Weiss Ratings cut shares of W.R. Berkley from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 20th. BMO Capital Markets raised shares of W.R. Berkley from an “underperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $64.00 to $68.00 in a research report on Thursday, April 23rd. Atlantic Securities set a $74.00 price objective on W.R. Berkley in a report on Wednesday, July 15th. Bank of America reiterated an “underperform” rating and issued a $68.00 price objective (down from $74.00) on shares of W.R. Berkley in a research report on Thursday, July 16th. Finally, Mizuho raised their target price on W.R. Berkley from $72.00 to $74.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 21st. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have issued a Hold rating and six have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Reduce” and an average price target of $70.94.

W.R. Berkley Price Performance

Shares of WRB stock opened at $75.77 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 0.36 and a quick ratio of 0.36. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $69.34 and its two-hundred day moving average is $68.47. W.R. Berkley has a 12 month low of $62.87 and a 12 month high of $78.96. The company has a market capitalization of $28.21 billion, a PE ratio of 15.56, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.51 and a beta of 0.29.

W.R. Berkley (NYSE:WRB) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, July 20th. The insurance provider reported $1.27 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.08 by $0.19. W.R. Berkley had a net margin of 12.94% and a return on equity of 19.49%. The firm had revenue of $3.72 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.28 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.05 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 2.4% compared to the same quarter last year.

W.R. Berkley Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 2nd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, June 23rd were given a dividend of $0.10 per share. This is a boost from W.R. Berkley’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.09. This represents a $0.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, June 23rd. W.R. Berkley’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 8.21%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On W.R. Berkley

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Entrust Financial LLC acquired a new position in shares of W.R. Berkley in the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. increased its holdings in W.R. Berkley by 140.0% in the 4th quarter. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. now owns 360 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 210 shares during the last quarter. Allied Private Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in W.R. Berkley in the second quarter valued at approximately $29,000. DV Equities LLC purchased a new stake in W.R. Berkley in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Finally, Triumph Capital Management acquired a new position in W.R. Berkley during the third quarter worth $35,000. 68.82% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

W.R. Berkley Company Profile

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.