BMO Capital Markets Cuts W. R. Berkley (NYSE:WRB) Price Target to $87.00

W. R. Berkley (NYSE:WRB) had its price objective decreased by equities research analysts at BMO Capital Markets from $93.00 to $87.00 in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a “market perform” rating on the insurance provider’s stock. BMO Capital Markets’ price target indicates a potential upside of 11.34% from the company’s current price.

Several other equities research analysts have also recently commented on the stock. UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of W. R. Berkley from $81.00 to $93.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 30th. Evercore ISI lifted their target price on W. R. Berkley from $83.00 to $89.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on W. R. Berkley from $99.00 to $94.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their target price on shares of W. R. Berkley from $73.00 to $79.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Thursday, January 25th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price target on shares of W. R. Berkley from $86.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, April 12th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $89.75.

W. R. Berkley Trading Down 1.2 %

Shares of NYSE:WRB traded down $0.94 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $78.14. 1,174,144 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,237,241. W. R. Berkley has a 1-year low of $55.50 and a 1-year high of $89.18. The company has a current ratio of 0.37, a quick ratio of 0.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38. The firm has a market cap of $20.05 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.44, a PEG ratio of 1.56 and a beta of 0.57. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $84.55 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $76.20.

W. R. Berkley (NYSE:WRB) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 23rd. The insurance provider reported $1.56 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.46 by $0.10. W. R. Berkley had a net margin of 11.38% and a return on equity of 19.03%. The business had revenue of $2.76 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.77 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.00 EPS. W. R. Berkley’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.0% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts predict that W. R. Berkley will post 5.94 earnings per share for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On W. R. Berkley

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC acquired a new stake in W. R. Berkley during the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Glassman Wealth Services boosted its position in shares of W. R. Berkley by 123.1% during the 4th quarter. Glassman Wealth Services now owns 357 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 197 shares in the last quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust raised its position in W. R. Berkley by 106.1% during the third quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 406 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 209 shares in the last quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. lifted its stake in W. R. Berkley by 132.6% during the third quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. now owns 414 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 236 shares during the last quarter. Finally, VisionPoint Advisory Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of W. R. Berkley during the 3rd quarter worth $27,000. 68.82% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About W. R. Berkley

W. R. Berkley Corporation, an insurance holding company, operates as a commercial lines writers worldwide. It operates in two segments, Insurance and Reinsurance & Monoline Excess. The Insurance segment underwrites commercial insurance business, including excess and surplus lines, admitted lines, and specialty personal lines.