Pitcairn Co. purchased a new position in shares of W. R. Berkley Co. (NYSE:WRB - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor purchased 22,893 shares of the insurance provider's stock, valued at approximately $1,340,000.
Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Whipplewood Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of W. R. Berkley in the 4th quarter worth $35,000. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC bought a new stake in W. R. Berkley in the 4th quarter worth about $42,000. Crowley Wealth Management Inc. bought a new stake in W. R. Berkley in the 4th quarter worth about $59,000. Tortoise Investment Management LLC increased its stake in W. R. Berkley by 69.9% in the 4th quarter. Tortoise Investment Management LLC now owns 1,313 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $77,000 after buying an additional 540 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. bought a new position in shares of W. R. Berkley during the 4th quarter worth approximately $79,000. 68.82% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.
W. R. Berkley Stock Performance
Shares of NYSE:WRB traded down $1.29 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $64.03. 683,891 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,791,290. W. R. Berkley Co. has a 52-week low of $50.73 and a 52-week high of $76.38. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $63.14 and a 200 day moving average of $60.71. 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 cap of $24.28 billion, a PE ratio of 14.67, a P/E/G ratio of 1.56 and a beta of 0.40.
W. R. Berkley (NYSE:WRB - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, January 27th. The insurance provider reported $1.13 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates 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, equities research analysts predict that W. R. Berkley Co. will post 4.33 EPS for the current year.
W. R. Berkley Announces Dividend
The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Investors of record on Monday, March 3rd were issued a dividend of $0.08 per share. This represents a $0.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.50%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 3rd. W. R. Berkley's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 7.34%.
Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth
A number of analysts recently commented on WRB shares. Bank of America reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and set a $74.00 price target (up from $73.00) on shares of W. R. Berkley in a research report on Tuesday, April 1st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their target price on W. R. Berkley from $64.00 to $62.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday. Royal Bank of Canada reissued a "sector perform" rating and issued a $63.00 price target on shares of W. R. Berkley in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of W. R. Berkley from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, April 3rd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut shares of W. R. Berkley from an "overweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and dropped their target price for the company from $70.00 to $69.00 in a research note on Wednesday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $65.13.
View Our Latest Stock Report on WRB
W. R. Berkley Company 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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