W.R. Berkley Corporation $WRB Position Raised by NewEdge Advisors LLC

Key Points

• NewEdge Advisors increased its W.R. Berkley position by 288.3% in the second quarter, owning 34,493 shares valued at approximately $2.43 million. Institutional investors collectively hold 68.82% of the company’s stock.
• Analysts remain cautious, with a consensus rating of “Reduce” and an average price target of $70.83; ratings include three Buys, nine Holds, and six Sells.
• W.R. Berkley surpassed quarterly expectations, reporting $1.27 in EPS versus the $1.08 consensus and $3.72 billion in revenue. The company also declared a quarterly dividend of $0.10 per share, representing a 0.6% yield.

NewEdge Advisors LLC boosted its position in W.R. Berkley Corporation (NYSE:WRB - Free Report) by 288.3% in the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 34,493 shares of the insurance provider's stock after purchasing an additional 25,610 shares during the period. NewEdge Advisors LLC's holdings in W.R. Berkley were worth $2,433,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. IFP Advisors Inc lifted its stake in W.R. Berkley by 44.7% during the second quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 466 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 144 shares during the last quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC grew its position in W.R. Berkley by 1,300.5% in the second quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC now owns 751,280 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $52,988,000 after buying an additional 697,638 shares during the last quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of W.R. Berkley by 4.3% in the second quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. now owns 12,176 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $859,000 after buying an additional 499 shares in the last quarter. Mraz Amerine & Associates Inc. lifted its position in shares of W.R. Berkley by 0.8% during the 2nd quarter. Mraz Amerine & Associates Inc. now owns 635,753 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $44,840,000 after acquiring an additional 5,160 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Allworth Financial LP boosted its stake in shares of W.R. Berkley by 79.7% during the 2nd quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 4,080 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $288,000 after acquiring an additional 1,810 shares in the last quarter. 68.82% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

WRB has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Wells Fargo & Company restated an "underweight" rating and issued a $68.00 target price (up from $67.00) on shares of W.R. Berkley in a report on Tuesday, July 21st. Mizuho decreased their price target on W.R. Berkley from $74.00 to $72.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday. Evercore reissued an "underperform" rating and issued a $68.00 price target on shares of W.R. Berkley in a research note on Friday, July 10th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods restated a "market perform" rating on shares of W.R. Berkley in a report on Tuesday, July 21st. Finally, Bank of America reiterated an "underperform" rating and issued a $68.00 target price (down from $74.00) on shares of W.R. Berkley in a report on Thursday, July 16th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have given a Hold rating and six have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Reduce" and an average target price of $70.83.

W.R. Berkley Stock Performance

Shares of W.R. Berkley stock opened at $70.05 on Friday. W.R. Berkley Corporation has a 12 month low of $62.87 and a 12 month high of $78.96. The company has a quick ratio of 0.37, a current ratio of 0.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. The stock has a market cap of $26.01 billion, a PE ratio of 14.38, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.74 and a beta of 0.28. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $70.89 and a 200-day simple moving average of $68.72.

W.R. Berkley (NYSE:WRB - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, July 20th. The insurance provider reported $1.27 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.08 by $0.19. W.R. Berkley had a return on equity of 19.44% and a net margin of 12.94%.The firm had revenue of $3.72 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.28 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.05 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 2.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that W.R. Berkley Corporation will post 4.87 EPS for the current fiscal year.

W.R. Berkley Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 30th. Investors of record on Monday, September 21st will be given a dividend of $0.10 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 21st. This represents a $0.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.6%. W.R. Berkley's payout ratio is presently 8.21%.

About W.R. Berkley

W.R. Berkley Corporation NYSE: WRB is an insurance holding company that operates through a group of property and casualty insurance businesses. The company provides commercial insurance and reinsurance products for businesses, organizations and other insurance companies, with an emphasis on specialty and complex risks.

Its offerings include commercial property and casualty coverage, excess and surplus lines, professional liability, workers' compensation, commercial automobile insurance, marine insurance and other specialty products.

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