National Bank of Canada FI Decreases Stock Position in W.R. Berkley Corporation (NYSE:WRB)

Key Points

• National Bank of Canada FI has reduced its stake in W.R. Berkley Corporation by 18.4%, owning 326,120 shares after selling 73,734 shares during the first quarter.
• W.R. Berkley recently reported earnings of $1.05 EPS for the quarter, surpassing analyst expectations, and declared a quarterly dividend increase from $0.08 to $0.09.
• Analysts have mixed views on W.R. Berkley, with target price adjustments ranging from $68 to $80, indicating a predominantly "hold" rating amongst research firms.

National Bank of Canada FI trimmed its stake in W.R. Berkley Corporation (NYSE:WRB - Free Report) by 18.4% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 326,120 shares of the insurance provider's stock after selling 73,734 shares during the period. National Bank of Canada FI owned 0.09% of W.R. Berkley worth $23,206,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Spectrum Wealth Counsel LLC bought a new stake in W.R. Berkley during the 1st quarter valued at about $29,000. Garde Capital Inc. purchased a new position in W.R. Berkley during the first quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Optiver Holding B.V. lifted its holdings in W.R. Berkley by 107.3% during the fourth quarter. Optiver Holding B.V. now owns 427 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 221 shares in the last quarter. N.E.W. Advisory Services LLC purchased a new position in W.R. Berkley during the first quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Finally, Mpwm Advisory Solutions LLC purchased a new position in shares of W.R. Berkley in the fourth quarter worth $37,000. 68.82% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

W.R. Berkley Trading Up 2.0%

Shares of WRB traded up $1.41 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $71.42. The stock had a trading volume of 1,803,700 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,935,716. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31, a current ratio of 0.37 and a quick ratio of 0.37. W.R. Berkley Corporation has a 52-week low of $55.80 and a 52-week high of $76.38. The business's fifty day moving average is $70.81 and its 200 day moving average is $68.14. The firm has a market cap of $27.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.27, a P/E/G ratio of 2.42 and a beta of 0.39.

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

W.R. Berkley Increases Dividend

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on WRB shares. TD Cowen cut shares of W.R. Berkley from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $78.00 price target on the stock. in a research report on Friday, June 27th. Cantor Fitzgerald started coverage on shares of W.R. Berkley in a research report on Tuesday. They issued an "overweight" rating and a $82.00 price target on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price target 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. The Goldman Sachs Group cut shares of W.R. Berkley from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $74.00 to $76.00 in a research report on Thursday, May 22nd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on shares of W.R. Berkley from $71.00 to $68.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, July 22nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $72.54.

W.R. Berkley Profile

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.