Investment Planning Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in shares of W. R. Berkley Co. (NYSE:WRB - Free Report) by 45.8% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 20,018 shares of the insurance provider's stock after purchasing an additional 6,287 shares during the quarter. W. R. Berkley comprises about 0.5% of Investment Planning Advisors Inc.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 29th biggest position. Investment Planning Advisors Inc.'s holdings in W. R. Berkley were worth $1,171,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.
A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Armstrong Advisory Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of W. R. Berkley by 51.0% in the third quarter. Armstrong Advisory Group Inc. now owns 619 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 209 shares during the last quarter. PFS Partners LLC raised its holdings in W. R. Berkley by 51.1% in the 3rd quarter. PFS Partners LLC now owns 719 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $41,000 after acquiring an additional 243 shares during the period. Quarry LP acquired a new position in W. R. Berkley during the 2nd quarter worth $42,000. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV boosted its holdings in W. R. Berkley by 108.1% during the third quarter. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV now owns 801 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $45,000 after acquiring an additional 416 shares during the period. Finally, Coastline Trust Co acquired a new stake in shares of W. R. Berkley in the third quarter valued at about $47,000. 68.82% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.
W. R. Berkley Price Performance
Shares of WRB stock traded up $0.11 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $59.31. The company had a trading volume of 2,974,697 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,281,665. W. R. Berkley Co. has a 12 month low of $50.73 and a 12 month high of $65.49. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34, a quick ratio of 0.36 and a current ratio of 0.36. The firm's fifty day moving average is $60.10 and its 200 day moving average is $58.39. The firm has a market capitalization of $22.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.19, a PEG ratio of 1.04 and a beta of 0.67.
W. R. Berkley (NYSE:WRB - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, January 27th. The insurance provider reported $1.13 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.95 by $0.18. W. R. Berkley had a return on equity of 20.41% and a net margin of 11.96%. On average, sell-side analysts predict that W. R. Berkley Co. will post 3.95 EPS for the current fiscal year.
W. R. Berkley Announces Dividend
The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 27th. Investors of record on Monday, December 16th were issued a dividend of $0.08 per share. This represents a $0.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.54%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 16th. W. R. Berkley's dividend payout ratio is currently 8.20%.
Wall Street Analyst Weigh In
Several analysts recently weighed in on WRB shares. Royal Bank of Canada restated a "sector perform" rating and set a $63.00 target price on shares of W. R. Berkley in a research note on Tuesday. StockNews.com cut W. R. Berkley from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised shares of W. R. Berkley from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $69.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Monday, November 25th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price target on shares of W. R. Berkley from $60.00 to $61.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Bank of America boosted their price objective on shares of W. R. Berkley from $73.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. 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 data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $64.36.
View Our Latest Analysis on WRB
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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