New Vernon Investment Management LLC Sells 48,269 Shares of W. R. Berkley Co. (NYSE:WRB)

New Vernon Investment Management LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of W. R. Berkley Co. (NYSE:WRB - Free Report) by 78.5% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 13,201 shares of the insurance provider's stock after selling 48,269 shares during the quarter. W. R. Berkley accounts for 0.5% of New Vernon Investment Management LLC's holdings, making the stock its 23rd biggest position. New Vernon Investment Management LLC's holdings in W. R. Berkley were worth $773,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Whipplewood Advisors LLC bought a new stake in W. R. Berkley during the 4th quarter worth approximately $35,000. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC bought a new stake in W. R. Berkley during the 4th quarter worth approximately $42,000. Crowley Wealth Management Inc. bought a new stake in W. R. Berkley during the 4th quarter worth approximately $59,000. Tortoise Investment Management LLC increased its stake in W. R. Berkley by 69.9% during the 4th quarter. Tortoise Investment Management LLC now owns 1,313 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $77,000 after purchasing an additional 540 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. bought a new stake in W. R. Berkley during the 4th quarter worth approximately $79,000. 68.82% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

W. R. Berkley Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:WRB traded down $0.08 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $71.20. 410,390 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,765,458. W. R. Berkley Co. has a 12 month low of $51.17 and a 12 month high of $76.38. The firm has a market cap of $27.01 billion, a PE ratio of 16.32, a PEG ratio of 1.56 and a beta of 0.40. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $65.91 and a 200-day moving average price of $62.01. The company has a current ratio of 0.36, a quick ratio of 0.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34.

W. R. Berkley (NYSE:WRB - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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). W. R. Berkley had a return on equity of 20.83% and a net margin of 12.88%. The firm had revenue of $3.01 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.01 billion. Research analysts expect that W. R. Berkley Co. will post 4.33 EPS for the current fiscal year.

W. R. Berkley Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Investors of record on Monday, March 3rd were paid a $0.08 dividend. This represents a $0.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.45%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 3rd. W. R. Berkley's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 7.42%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on WRB shares. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of W. R. Berkley from $69.00 to $70.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. Truist Financial lifted their target price 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. UBS Group lifted their target price on W. R. Berkley from $73.00 to $78.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday. StockNews.com downgraded W. R. Berkley from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, April 11th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their target price on W. R. Berkley from $62.00 to $65.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 22nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $68.39.

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.