UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC Grows Stock Position in W.R. Berkley Corporation $WRB

Key Points

• UBS Asset Management Americas LLC increased its stake in W.R. Berkley Corporation by 2.1%, acquiring 52,594 additional shares, bringing its total to approximately 2.54 million shares worth about $180.7 million.
• W.R. Berkley announced a quarterly dividend of $0.09 per share, expected to be paid on September 30th, representing a 0.5% yield with a payout ratio of 8.20%.
• Analysts have set varying price targets for W.R. Berkley, with UBS Group raising its target to $80, while others like Wells Fargo have lowered theirs to $68, highlighting a broad consensus of a "Hold" rating for the stock.

UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC grew its holdings in shares of W.R. Berkley Corporation (NYSE:WRB - Free Report) by 2.1% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 2,539,691 shares of the insurance provider's stock after acquiring an additional 52,594 shares during the quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC owned 0.67% of W.R. Berkley worth $180,724,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Federation des caisses Desjardins du Quebec grew its holdings in shares of W.R. Berkley by 70.8% in the first quarter. Federation des caisses Desjardins du Quebec now owns 17,197 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $1,224,000 after purchasing an additional 7,131 shares during the last quarter. Brighton Jones LLC grew its holdings in shares of W.R. Berkley by 75.6% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 50,503 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $2,955,000 after purchasing an additional 21,737 shares during the last quarter. Sciencast Management LP bought a new position in shares of W.R. Berkley in the first quarter worth approximately $3,493,000. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH grew its holdings in shares of W.R. Berkley by 3.2% in the first quarter. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH now owns 247,919 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $17,642,000 after purchasing an additional 7,702 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Tribune Investment Group LP bought a new position in shares of W.R. Berkley in the first quarter worth approximately $2,135,000. 68.82% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

W.R. Berkley Stock Up 1.9%

W.R. Berkley stock traded up $1.37 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $72.79. The stock had a trading volume of 313,921 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,889,469. The company has a market capitalization of $27.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.58, a PEG ratio of 2.52 and a beta of 0.41. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $70.55 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $70.07. W.R. Berkley Corporation has a one year low of $55.80 and a one year high of $76.38. 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 (NYSE:WRB - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results 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 return on equity of 18.83% and a net margin of 12.32%.The business had revenue of $3.10 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.10 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.04 EPS. On average, analysts expect that W.R. Berkley Corporation will post 4.33 EPS for the current fiscal year.

W.R. Berkley Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 22nd will be given a $0.09 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 22nd. 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 Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently weighed in on WRB. Wall Street Zen cut shares of W.R. Berkley from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 21st. Wolfe Research began coverage on shares of W.R. Berkley in a report on Monday. They issued a "peer perform" rating on the stock. 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 report on Friday, June 27th. UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of W.R. Berkley from $78.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. Finally, Barclays lifted their price target on shares of W.R. Berkley from $62.00 to $66.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a report on Monday, July 7th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have given a Buy rating, ten have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, W.R. Berkley currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $72.54.

W.R. Berkley Company 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.