W. R. Berkley Co. (NYSE:WRB) Stake Reduced by California Public Employees Retirement System

California Public Employees Retirement System lessened its holdings in shares of W. R. Berkley Co. (NYSE:WRB - Free Report) by 3.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 1,435,630 shares of the insurance provider's stock after selling 47,235 shares during the quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System owned 0.38% of W. R. Berkley worth $84,013,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of WRB. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans boosted its position in W. R. Berkley by 44.8% during the 3rd quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 11,796 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $669,000 after purchasing an additional 3,647 shares during the period. Fisher Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of W. R. Berkley in the third quarter worth about $203,000. FMR LLC grew its stake in shares of W. R. Berkley by 68.6% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 116,767 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $6,624,000 after buying an additional 47,515 shares in the last quarter. Glenmede Trust Co. NA raised its holdings in shares of W. R. Berkley by 59.8% during the 3rd quarter. Glenmede Trust Co. NA now owns 9,859 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $559,000 after buying an additional 3,688 shares during the period. Finally, CreativeOne Wealth LLC acquired a new position in W. R. Berkley during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $410,000. 68.82% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

W. R. Berkley Stock Performance

NYSE:WRB traded up $0.55 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $70.30. 2,311,054 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,779,140. W. R. Berkley Co. has a 52 week low of $50.73 and a 52 week high of $76.38. The company has a quick ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 0.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34. The stock has a market capitalization of $26.66 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.11, a P/E/G ratio of 1.56 and a beta of 0.40. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $62.37 and a 200-day simple moving average of $60.43.

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W. R. Berkley (NYSE:WRB - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, January 27th. The insurance provider reported $1.13 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.95 by $0.18. W. R. Berkley had a return on equity of 20.83% and a net margin of 12.88%. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that W. R. Berkley Co. will post 4.33 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

W. R. Berkley Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Investors of record on Monday, March 3rd were given a dividend of $0.08 per share. This represents a $0.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.46%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 3rd. W. R. Berkley's dividend payout ratio is presently 7.34%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have issued reports on WRB shares. StockNews.com downgraded shares of W. R. Berkley from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday. Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on shares of W. R. Berkley in a report on Thursday, December 5th. They set an "equal weight" rating and a $65.00 price target for the company. Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of W. R. Berkley from $50.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on W. R. Berkley from $67.00 to $70.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price target on W. R. Berkley from $60.00 to $61.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $65.13.

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.