W.R. Berkley Corporation (NYSE:WRB) Shares Sold by Benjamin Edwards Inc.

Key Points

• Benjamin Edwards Inc. has reduced its stake in W.R. Berkley Corporation by 5.1%, owning 131,604 shares worth approximately $9.37 million after selling 7,124 shares in the first quarter.
• Several major investors, including Mather Group LLC and Avior Wealth Management LLC, have increased their positions in W.R. Berkley, contributing to institutional ownership of 68.82%.
• W.R. Berkley recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.09, increased from $0.08, reflecting positive growth with an annualized dividend yield of 0.5%.

Benjamin Edwards Inc. reduced its position in shares of W.R. Berkley Corporation (NYSE:WRB - Free Report) by 5.1% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 131,604 shares of the insurance provider's stock after selling 7,124 shares during the period. Benjamin Edwards Inc.'s holdings in W.R. Berkley were worth $9,365,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Covestor Ltd boosted its stake in W.R. Berkley by 20.0% during the first quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 1,635 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $116,000 after buying an additional 272 shares during the period. Cynosure Group LLC boosted its stake in W.R. Berkley by 7.9% during the first quarter. Cynosure Group LLC now owns 5,460 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $389,000 after buying an additional 399 shares during the period. Townsquare Capital LLC boosted its stake in W.R. Berkley by 8.7% during the first quarter. Townsquare Capital LLC now owns 49,179 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $3,500,000 after buying an additional 3,956 shares during the period. Forsta AP Fonden boosted its stake in W.R. Berkley by 9.2% during the first quarter. Forsta AP Fonden now owns 66,550 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $4,736,000 after buying an additional 5,600 shares during the period. Finally, Nicholson Wealth Management Group LLC purchased a new position in W.R. Berkley during the first quarter worth about $272,000. 68.82% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

W.R. Berkley Stock Up 0.1%

W.R. Berkley stock traded up $0.05 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $70.01. The stock had a trading volume of 2,111,575 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,243,832. W.R. Berkley Corporation has a 52-week low of $55.80 and a 52-week high of $76.38. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $70.86 and a 200 day moving average price of $68.12. The company has a quick ratio of 0.37, a current ratio of 0.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31. The stock has a market cap of $26.55 billion, a PE ratio of 15.95, a P/E/G ratio of 2.42 and a beta of 0.39.

W.R. Berkley (NYSE:WRB - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, July 21st. The insurance provider reported $1.05 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.03 by $0.02. W.R. Berkley had a net margin of 12.32% and a return on equity of 18.83%. The company had revenue of $3.10 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.10 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.04 earnings per share. On average, analysts predict that W.R. Berkley Corporation will post 4.33 EPS for the current year.

W.R. Berkley Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 23rd were issued a dividend of $0.09 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 23rd. This is an increase from W.R. Berkley's previous quarterly dividend of $0.08. This represents a $0.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.5%. W.R. Berkley's dividend payout ratio is 8.20%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have weighed in on WRB shares. UBS Group increased their target price on shares of W.R. Berkley from $78.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 9th. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered shares of W.R. Berkley from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating and increased their target price for the stock from $74.00 to $76.00 in a research note on Thursday, May 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on shares of W.R. Berkley from $71.00 to $68.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, July 22nd. Cantor Fitzgerald initiated coverage on shares of W.R. Berkley in a report on Tuesday. They issued an "overweight" rating and a $82.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on shares of W.R. Berkley from $63.00 to $75.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Monday, May 19th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $72.54.

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.