Wells Fargo & Company Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for W.R. Berkley (NYSE:WRB) Stock

Key Points

• Wells Fargo raised its price target on W.R. Berkley from $58 to $67, while keeping an underweight rating on the stock. The new target still implies a 6.52% downside from the previous close.
• Other analysts have been mixed, with recent target changes ranging from upgrades to downgrades; overall, MarketBeat shows a consensus rating of “Reduce” and an average price target of $69.75.
• W.R. Berkley shares recently traded at $71.67 after rising 0.6%, and the company beat its latest earnings expectations with $1.30 EPS on $3.69 billion in revenue.

W.R. Berkley (NYSE:WRB - Get Free Report) had its target price lifted by analysts at Wells Fargo & Company from $58.00 to $67.00 in a research note issued on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an "underweight" rating on the insurance provider's stock. Wells Fargo & Company's target price would suggest a potential downside of 6.52% from the stock's previous close.

A number of other research analysts have also recently commented on WRB. Weiss Ratings cut W.R. Berkley from a "buy (b)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 20th. BMO Capital Markets upgraded shares of W.R. Berkley from an "underperform" rating to a "market perform" rating and raised their price objective for the company from $64.00 to $68.00 in a research report on Thursday, April 23rd. UBS Group set a $68.00 price target on shares of W.R. Berkley and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, April 27th. Argus lowered shares of W.R. Berkley from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, April 27th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on W.R. Berkley from $72.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Monday. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, ten have given a Hold rating and five have assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Reduce" and an average price target of $69.75.

W.R. Berkley Stock Up 0.6%

NYSE:WRB traded up $0.39 on Thursday, hitting $71.67. The stock had a trading volume of 1,233,563 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,212,928. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 0.36 and a current ratio of 0.36. The stock has a market cap of $26.68 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.21, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.38 and a beta of 0.29. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $67.78 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $68.26. W.R. Berkley has a 1 year low of $62.87 and a 1 year high of $78.96.

W.R. Berkley (NYSE:WRB - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 21st. The insurance provider reported $1.30 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.13 by $0.17. The business had revenue of $3.69 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.18 billion. W.R. Berkley had a return on equity of 18.92% and a net margin of 12.64%.The business's revenue was up 1.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.01 earnings per share. Analysts predict that W.R. Berkley will post 4.67 earnings per share for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On W.R. Berkley

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Entrust Financial LLC bought a new position in shares of W.R. Berkley in the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. boosted its stake in W.R. Berkley by 140.0% during the fourth quarter. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. now owns 360 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 210 shares during the last quarter. DV Equities LLC bought a new position in W.R. Berkley during the fourth quarter valued at $29,000. Triumph Capital Management purchased a new position in shares of W.R. Berkley in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $35,000. Finally, Quarry LP purchased a new position in shares of W.R. Berkley during the 4th quarter worth about $39,000. 68.82% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About W.R. Berkley

W. R. Berkley Corporation NYSE: WRB is a publicly traded insurance holding company that underwrites and sells commercial property and casualty insurance, specialty insurance products, and reinsurance. Headquartered in Greenwich, Connecticut, the company operates a portfolio of underwriting businesses that focus on niche and specialty commercial risks, offering coverage tailored to industries such as transportation, construction, professional services and other commercial lines.

The company's product mix includes primary and excess casualty, property, professional liability, environmental and other specialty lines, together with treaty and facultative reinsurance solutions.

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