Elo Mutual Pension Insurance Co raised its position in shares of W. R. Berkley Co. (NYSE:WRB - Free Report) by 13.0% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 30,666 shares of the insurance provider's stock after acquiring an additional 3,528 shares during the period. Elo Mutual Pension Insurance Co's holdings in W. R. Berkley were worth $1,795,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.
Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Whipplewood Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in W. R. Berkley during the 4th quarter worth approximately $35,000. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of W. R. Berkley in the fourth quarter worth $42,000. Brooklyn Investment Group purchased a new position in shares of W. R. Berkley in the 3rd quarter valued at $48,000. Crowley Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of W. R. Berkley in the 4th quarter valued at $59,000. Finally, Tortoise Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of 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 valued at $77,000 after acquiring an additional 540 shares in the last quarter. 68.82% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.
W. R. Berkley Stock Down 1.1 %
NYSE:WRB traded down $0.78 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $69.47. The stock had a trading volume of 1,207,258 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,773,665. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34, a current ratio of 0.36 and a quick ratio of 0.36. The company has a market capitalization of $26.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.92, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.56 and a beta of 0.63. W. R. Berkley Co. has a 1-year low of $50.73 and a 1-year high of $76.38. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $62.15 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $60.36.
W. R. Berkley (NYSE:WRB - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Monday, January 27th. The insurance provider reported $1.13 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%. Equities analysts anticipate that W. R. Berkley Co. will post 4.33 EPS for the current year.
W. R. Berkley Announces Dividend
The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 3rd were issued a dividend of $0.08 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $0.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.46%. W. R. Berkley's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 7.34%.
Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades
Several research analysts have commented on WRB shares. Barclays raised their price objective on W. R. Berkley from $50.00 to $52.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. StockNews.com raised W. R. Berkley from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 26th. Bank of America reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and issued a $74.00 price objective (up previously from $73.00) on shares of W. R. Berkley in a research report on Tuesday. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of W. R. Berkley from $67.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a "sector perform" rating and set a $63.00 price target on shares of W. R. Berkley in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, W. R. Berkley currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $64.21.
Check Out Our Latest Stock Analysis on W. R. Berkley
W. R. Berkley Profile
(
Free Report)
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.
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