Global Assets Advisory LLC Acquires New Shares in W.R. Berkley Corporation (NYSE:WRB)

Global Assets Advisory LLC purchased a new position in shares of W.R. Berkley Corporation (NYSE:WRB - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor purchased 6,968 shares of the insurance provider's stock, valued at approximately $470,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in WRB. Garde Capital Inc. bought a new stake in W.R. Berkley in the first quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Optiver Holding B.V. grew its stake in shares of W.R. Berkley by 107.3% in the 4th quarter. Optiver Holding B.V. now owns 427 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 221 shares in the last quarter. Whipplewood Advisors LLC bought a new position in W.R. Berkley in the 4th quarter valued at $35,000. Mpwm Advisory Solutions LLC purchased a new stake in W.R. Berkley during the fourth quarter worth about $37,000. Finally, Colonial Trust Co SC raised its holdings in shares of W.R. Berkley by 79.9% in the 4th quarter. Colonial Trust Co SC now owns 822 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $48,000 after purchasing an additional 365 shares during the period. 68.82% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

W.R. Berkley Stock Down 0.1%

Shares of NYSE WRB traded down $0.04 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $72.30. 461,289 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,763,820. The company has a market cap of $27.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.77, a PEG ratio of 2.46 and a beta of 0.42. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $72.58 and a 200-day moving average price of $65.56. W.R. Berkley Corporation has a 52 week low of $51.41 and a 52 week high of $76.38. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 0.36 and a current ratio of 0.36.

W.R. Berkley (NYSE:WRB - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Monday, April 21st. The insurance provider reported $1.01 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.08 by ($0.07). W.R. Berkley had a net margin of 12.43% and a return on equity of 19.66%. The business had revenue of $3.01 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.01 billion. Research analysts anticipate 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 will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 23rd will be paid a dividend of $0.09 per share. This is a boost from W.R. Berkley's previous quarterly dividend of $0.08. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 23rd. This represents a $0.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.50%. W.R. Berkley's payout ratio is presently 8.35%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on WRB shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their target price on shares of W.R. Berkley from $65.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research report on Monday, May 19th. Truist Financial lifted their price target on W.R. Berkley from $68.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 3rd. Bank of America reiterated a "neutral" rating and set a $74.00 price objective (up from $73.00) on shares of W.R. Berkley in a research report on Tuesday, April 1st. 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 company from $74.00 to $76.00 in a report on Thursday, May 22nd. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on W.R. Berkley from $63.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Monday, May 19th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $71.42.

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.