Short Interest in W.R. Berkley Corporation (NYSE:WRB) Drops By 29.6%

W.R. Berkley Corporation (NYSE:WRB) was the target of a large drop in short interest during the month of December. As of December 31st, there was short interest totaling 17,506,059 shares, a drop of 29.6% from the December 15th total of 24,860,492 shares. Approximately 6.0% of the company’s shares are short sold. Based on an average trading volume of 2,679,124 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 6.5 days. Based on an average trading volume of 2,679,124 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 6.5 days. Approximately 6.0% of the company’s shares are short sold.

W.R. Berkley Trading Down 1.2%

NYSE WRB traded down $0.86 during trading on Friday, hitting $67.85. The stock had a trading volume of 3,279,517 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,263,809. W.R. Berkley has a twelve month low of $56.86 and a twelve month high of $78.96. The company has a market capitalization of $25.79 billion, a PE ratio of 14.25, a PEG ratio of 2.52 and a beta of 0.39. 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 firm has a 50 day moving average price of $71.86 and a 200 day moving average price of $72.18.

W.R. Berkley (NYSE:WRB) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, October 20th. The insurance provider reported $1.10 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.07 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $3.77 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.16 billion. W.R. Berkley had a net margin of 13.01% and a return on equity of 18.86%. The company’s revenue was up 10.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.93 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast 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 Monday, December 29th. Investors of record on Monday, December 15th were paid a $0.09 dividend. This represents a $0.36 dividend on an annualized basis 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 presently 7.56%.

Key W.R. Berkley News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Major shareholder Sumitomo (Mitsui) has been buying sizeable blocks of WRB across Jan. 12–16, repeatedly increasing its stake with purchases at prices around the high-$60s; the purchases represent multi?million dollar commitments and act as an insider vote of confidence. Mitsui Sumitomo buys Berkley (WRB) shares
• Neutral Sentiment: The purchases are all formally disclosed in SEC ownership filings, which confirm the trades and updated stake size but show each increase is under 1% individually; transparency reduces uncertainty but the moves are gradual. SEC ownership filing
• Neutral Sentiment: Cantor Fitzgerald trimmed its price target modestly while keeping an overweight stance, reflecting slightly lower upside from that analyst but continued support; other shops remain mixed, leaving consensus near the low?$70s. Cantor Fitzgerald lowers expectations
• Negative Sentiment: Technicals and analyst mix are headwinds: WRB is trading below its 50? and 200?day moving averages (~$72), and several analysts carry hold/underweight views or lower targets, which can cap near?term upside despite insider buying.

Insider Transactions at W.R. Berkley

In other news, major shareholder Sumitomo Insurance Co L. Mitsui acquired 325,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 13th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $68.03 per share, with a total value of $22,109,750.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 52,496,504 shares in the company, valued at $3,571,337,167.12. The trade was a 0.62% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Over the last quarter, insiders have acquired 4,454,916 shares of company stock worth $309,561,870. 23.30% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of W.R. Berkley

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Johnson Financial Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of W.R. Berkley by 22.3% in the third quarter. Johnson Financial Group Inc. now owns 756 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $58,000 after buying an additional 138 shares during the period. Maridea Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in W.R. Berkley by 2.0% during the third quarter. Maridea Wealth Management LLC now owns 7,180 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $528,000 after purchasing an additional 141 shares during the last quarter. Physician Wealth Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in W.R. Berkley by 40.2% in the third quarter. Physician Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 523 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $40,000 after acquiring an additional 150 shares during the last quarter. Valeo Financial Advisors LLC boosted its position in W.R. Berkley by 3.3% during the 3rd quarter. Valeo Financial Advisors LLC now owns 4,788 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $367,000 after purchasing an additional 151 shares during the period. Finally, Allworth Financial LP increased its holdings in shares of W.R. Berkley by 4.8% in the 3rd quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 3,328 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $255,000 after acquiring an additional 153 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 68.82% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on WRB. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their target price on shares of W.R. Berkley from $76.00 to $75.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, October 21st. Cantor Fitzgerald lowered their price target on W.R. Berkley from $78.00 to $76.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday. Evercore ISI set a $69.00 target price on W.R. Berkley and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 7th. UBS Group reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $87.00 price objective on shares of W.R. Berkley in a research note on Friday, November 7th. Finally, Morgan Stanley set a $75.00 target price on W.R. Berkley in a research note on Tuesday, December 16th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have issued a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $73.00.

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.