W.R. Berkley Corporation (NYSE:WRB) Given Average Recommendation of “Reduce” by Brokerages

Shares of W.R. Berkley Corporation (NYSE:WRB) have received an average rating of “Reduce” from the eighteen brokerages that are currently covering the firm, Marketbeat reports. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, eleven have assigned a hold recommendation and three have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month price objective among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $68.75.

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Cantor Fitzgerald downgraded shares of W.R. Berkley from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and decreased their price target for the stock from $75.00 to $71.00 in a research note on Thursday, April 9th. Bank of America dropped their price objective on shares of W.R. Berkley from $68.00 to $67.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 14th. UBS Group decreased their target price on shares of W.R. Berkley from $71.00 to $69.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 8th. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on W.R. Berkley from $73.00 to $72.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 6th. Finally, TD Cowen lowered W.R. Berkley from a “buy” rating to a “sell” rating and dropped their price target for the company from $77.00 to $55.00 in a research report on Tuesday, January 20th.

Insider Activity

In related news, major shareholder Sumitomo Insurance Co L. Mitsui bought 112,176 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 3rd. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $72.20 per share, with a total value of $8,099,107.20. Following the purchase, the insider directly owned 58,780,450 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,243,948,490. The trade was a 0.19% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Over the last three months, insiders acquired 4,848,946 shares of company stock valued at $335,960,638. 23.00% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On W.R. Berkley

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Mitsui Sumitomo Insurance Co. Ltd. purchased a new position in W.R. Berkley during the fourth quarter worth about $3,542,919,000. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in shares of W.R. Berkley by 0.8% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 37,033,581 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $2,596,795,000 after buying an additional 309,828 shares during the period. State Street Corp lifted its holdings in W.R. Berkley by 1.0% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 14,921,114 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $1,143,256,000 after acquiring an additional 149,605 shares during the last quarter. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. purchased a new position in W.R. Berkley in the third quarter worth approximately $682,816,000. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new stake in W.R. Berkley during the fourth quarter worth $435,752,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 68.82% of the company’s stock.

W.R. Berkley Stock Down 1.3%

NYSE WRB opened at $65.35 on Wednesday. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $68.17 and a 200 day moving average price of $70.70. 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 company has a market cap of $24.47 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.68, a P/E/G ratio of 2.77 and a beta of 0.37. W.R. Berkley has a one year low of $63.67 and a one year high of $78.96.

W.R. Berkley (NYSE:WRB) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, April 21st. The insurance provider reported $1.30 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.13 by $0.17. W.R. Berkley had a net margin of 12.10% and a return on equity of 18.17%. The company had revenue of $3.69 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.18 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.01 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 1.3% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts anticipate that W.R. Berkley will post 4.55 EPS for the current fiscal year.

W.R. Berkley Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 4th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 23rd were issued a $0.09 dividend. This represents a $0.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.6%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 23rd. W.R. Berkley’s dividend payout ratio is presently 8.09%.

Key W.R. Berkley News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Q1 earnings beat expectations — WRB reported roughly $1.30–$1.31 EPS, topping consensus and rising year‑over‑year, showing stronger profitability. W. R. Berkley Corporation Reports First Quarter 2026 Results
• Positive Sentiment: Premiums and net income grew — gross and net written premiums increased year-over-year and net income/diluted EPS rose versus prior year, supporting underwriting momentum. MarketBeat Q1 summary and press release
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst commentary and metric reviews — Zacks and other outlets highlight key ratios (net margin, ROE) and compare metrics to estimates, useful for deeper modeling but not read‑throughs by themselves. W.R. Berkley (WRB) Reports Q1 Earnings: What Key Metrics Have to Say
• Negative Sentiment: Reserve concerns are drawing attention — analysts and press note reserve adequacy/questions about loss reserves, which can pressure insurer multiples and prompt investor caution. W.R. Berkley faces earnings test as reserve concerns mount
• Negative Sentiment: Conflicting revenue headlines — while several reports show revenue above some estimates, at least one headline flagged a revenue miss, adding short‑term confusion and volatility. W R Berkley (NYSE:WRB) misses Q1 CY2026 revenue estimates

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.