Squarepoint Ops LLC Cuts Stock Position in W. R. Berkley Co. (NYSE:WRB)

Squarepoint Ops LLC lessened its position in shares of W. R. Berkley Co. (NYSE:WRB - Free Report) by 4.0% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 149,623 shares of the insurance provider's stock after selling 6,253 shares during the period. Squarepoint Ops LLC's holdings in W. R. Berkley were worth $8,756,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Optiver Holding B.V. increased its position in W. R. Berkley by 107.3% during the 4th quarter. Optiver Holding B.V. now owns 427 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 221 shares in the last quarter. Whipplewood Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of W. R. Berkley during the fourth quarter worth $35,000. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of W. R. Berkley during the fourth quarter worth $42,000. Colonial Trust Co SC boosted its stake in W. R. Berkley by 79.9% during the fourth quarter. Colonial Trust Co SC now owns 822 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $48,000 after acquiring an additional 365 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Crowley Wealth Management Inc. bought a new position in W. R. Berkley during the fourth quarter worth $59,000. 68.82% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Bank of America reissued a "neutral" rating and set a $74.00 target price (up from $73.00) on shares of W. R. Berkley in a research note on Tuesday, April 1st. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on shares of W. R. Berkley from $63.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Monday, May 19th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted 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 note on Monday, May 19th. Barclays lifted their target price on shares of W. R. Berkley from $52.00 to $62.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research note on Friday, April 11th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price objective on shares of W. R. Berkley from $57.00 to $66.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, April 11th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $70.64.

W. R. Berkley Stock Up 0.0%

Shares of NYSE:WRB traded up $0.03 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $73.32. The company's stock had a trading volume of 201,451 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,756,886. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $70.13 and a 200-day moving average of $63.96. The firm has a market capitalization of $27.81 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.80, a PEG ratio of 1.56 and a beta of 0.44. The company has a quick ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 0.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34. W. R. Berkley Co. has a 12-month low of $51.17 and a 12-month high of $76.38.

W. R. Berkley (NYSE:WRB - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, April 21st. The insurance provider reported $1.01 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.08 by ($0.07). The firm had revenue of $3.01 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.01 billion. W. R. Berkley had a return on equity of 20.83% and a net margin of 12.88%. On average, research analysts anticipate that W. R. Berkley Co. will post 4.33 earnings per share for the current year.

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.