Quantinno Capital Management LP grew its stake in W.R. Berkley Corporation (NYSE:WRB – Free Report) by 8.3% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 263,179 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 20,107 shares during the quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP’s holdings in W.R. Berkley were worth $17,444,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.
A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of WRB. Johnson Financial Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of W.R. Berkley by 22.3% during the third quarter. Johnson Financial Group Inc. now owns 756 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $58,000 after purchasing an additional 138 shares in the last quarter. Inspire Advisors LLC raised its stake in W.R. Berkley by 1.0% during the 4th quarter. Inspire Advisors LLC now owns 14,364 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $1,007,000 after buying an additional 144 shares during the period. Coastal Bridge Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in W.R. Berkley by 1.5% during the fourth quarter. Coastal Bridge Advisors LLC now owns 10,277 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $721,000 after acquiring an additional 154 shares in the last quarter. HB Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in W.R. Berkley by 1.4% in the fourth quarter. HB Wealth Management LLC now owns 11,722 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $822,000 after acquiring an additional 167 shares during the period. Finally, Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund grew its stake in W.R. Berkley by 0.6% in the fourth quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund now owns 34,400 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $2,412,000 after acquiring an additional 200 shares during the period. 68.82% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.
Wall Street Analyst Weigh In
WRB has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Wolfe Research downgraded W.R. Berkley from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 1st. Wells Fargo & Company reiterated an “underweight” rating and issued a $68.00 price objective (up from $67.00) on shares of W.R. Berkley in a research report on Tuesday, July 21st. Wall Street Zen raised W.R. Berkley from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, April 25th. Argus downgraded shares of W.R. Berkley from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, April 27th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reaffirmed a “market perform” rating on shares of W.R. Berkley in a research note on Tuesday, July 21st. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have given a Hold rating and six have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Reduce” and a consensus target price of $70.94.
W.R. Berkley Price Performance
WRB stock opened at $72.68 on Monday. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $69.86 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $68.63. W.R. Berkley Corporation has a 1 year low of $62.87 and a 1 year high of $78.96. The stock has a market cap of $27.06 billion, a PE ratio of 14.92, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.34 and a beta of 0.29. The company has a current ratio of 0.36, a quick ratio of 0.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29.
W.R. Berkley (NYSE:WRB – Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, July 20th. The insurance provider reported $1.27 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.08 by $0.19. The company had revenue of $3.72 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.28 billion. W.R. Berkley had a return on equity of 19.49% and a net margin of 12.94%.The company’s quarterly revenue was up 2.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.05 earnings per share. Equities analysts forecast that W.R. Berkley Corporation will post 4.79 EPS for the current fiscal year.
W.R. Berkley Increases Dividend
The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 2nd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 23rd were paid a dividend of $0.10 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, June 23rd. This represents a $0.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.6%. This is an increase from W.R. Berkley’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.09. W.R. Berkley’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 8.21%.
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.
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