BloombergSen Inc. trimmed its holdings in W.R. Berkley Corporation (NYSE:WRB – Free Report) by 7.2% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 679,920 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 52,647 shares during the period. W.R. Berkley comprises about 3.5% of BloombergSen Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 12th biggest holding. BloombergSen Inc.’s holdings in W.R. Berkley were worth $47,676,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
A number of other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of WRB. Brighton Jones LLC lifted its stake in W.R. Berkley by 75.6% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 50,503 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $2,955,000 after purchasing an additional 21,737 shares in the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC lifted its stake in W.R. Berkley by 9.7% in the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 33,990 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $2,419,000 after purchasing an additional 3,013 shares in the last quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in W.R. Berkley by 399.0% in the 1st quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 9,506 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $675,000 after purchasing an additional 7,601 shares in the last quarter. Cary Street Partners Financial LLC lifted its stake in W.R. Berkley by 691.9% in the 2nd quarter. Cary Street Partners Financial LLC now owns 586 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $43,000 after purchasing an additional 512 shares in the last quarter. Finally, NewEdge Advisors LLC lifted its stake in W.R. Berkley by 12.0% in the 2nd quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 9,825 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $722,000 after purchasing an additional 1,056 shares in the last quarter. 68.82% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.
Insiders Place Their Bets
In related news, major shareholder Sumitomo Insurance Co L. Mitsui bought 112,176 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 3rd. The stock was purchased at an average price of $72.20 per share, for a total transaction of $8,099,107.20. Following the acquisition, the insider owned 58,780,450 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,243,948,490. This trade represents a 0.19% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In the last three months, insiders have purchased 1,111,830 shares of company stock valued at $79,622,596. 23.30% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.
W.R. Berkley Stock Up 0.2%
W.R. Berkley (NYSE:WRB – Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, April 21st. The insurance provider reported $1.30 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.13 by $0.17. W.R. Berkley had a net margin of 12.64% and a return on equity of 18.92%. The firm had revenue of $3.69 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.18 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.01 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts predict that W.R. Berkley Corporation will post 4.66 earnings per share for the current year.
Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades
A number of research analysts have weighed in on WRB shares. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on shares of W.R. Berkley from $66.00 to $64.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 22nd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their target price on shares of W.R. Berkley from $74.00 to $66.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 1st. Barclays raised their price target on shares of W.R. Berkley from $62.00 to $64.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 22nd. BMO Capital Markets upgraded shares of W.R. Berkley from an “underperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and raised their price target for the stock from $64.00 to $68.00 in a report on Thursday, April 23rd. Finally, Truist Financial cut their price target on shares of W.R. Berkley from $80.00 to $78.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, thirteen have given a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, W.R. Berkley currently has an average rating of “Reduce” and a consensus target price of $68.81.
Read Our Latest Research Report on WRB
W.R. Berkley 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.
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