W. R. Berkley Co. (NYSE:WRB) Sees Significant Growth in Short Interest

W. R. Berkley Co. (NYSE:WRB - Get Free Report) saw a large increase in short interest in the month of December. As of December 15th, there was short interest totalling 4,690,000 shares, an increase of 18.7% from the November 30th total of 3,950,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 1,710,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 2.7 days.

W. R. Berkley Stock Performance

Shares of WRB stock remained flat at $58.52 on Tuesday. 831,224 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,731,382. The firm has a market cap of $22.30 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.99, a P/E/G ratio of 1.17 and a beta of 0.65. W. R. Berkley has a one year low of $47.18 and a one year 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 company has a fifty day simple moving average of $60.37 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $58.10.

W. R. Berkley (NYSE:WRB - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, October 21st. The insurance provider reported $0.93 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.92 by $0.01. W. R. Berkley had a return on equity of 20.41% and a net margin of 11.96%. The company had revenue of $2.93 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.93 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.90 earnings per share. W. R. Berkley's revenue was up 10.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts expect that W. R. Berkley will post 3.96 earnings per share for the current year.

W. R. Berkley Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 27th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 16th were paid a dividend of $0.08 per share. This represents a $0.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.55%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 16th. W. R. Berkley's dividend payout ratio is currently 8.21%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently weighed in on WRB. Morgan Stanley assumed coverage on shares of W. R. Berkley in a research note on Thursday, December 5th. They issued an "equal weight" rating and a $65.00 target price for the company. Truist Financial lifted their price objective on W. R. Berkley from $64.00 to $68.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their target price on W. R. Berkley from $57.00 to $63.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. Evercore ISI lifted their price target on shares of W. R. Berkley from $57.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock an "in-line" rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded shares of W. R. Berkley from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $69.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Monday, November 25th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $64.28.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On W. R. Berkley

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Armstrong Advisory Group Inc. grew its stake in W. R. Berkley by 51.0% in the 3rd quarter. Armstrong Advisory Group Inc. now owns 619 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $35,000 after buying an additional 209 shares during the last quarter. PFS Partners LLC grew its position in shares of W. R. Berkley by 51.1% in the third quarter. PFS Partners LLC now owns 719 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $41,000 after purchasing an additional 243 shares during the last quarter. Quarry LP bought a new position in shares of W. R. Berkley during the second quarter worth approximately $42,000. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV lifted its holdings in W. R. Berkley by 108.1% during the 3rd quarter. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV now owns 801 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $45,000 after purchasing an additional 416 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Kiely Wealth Advisory Group Inc. boosted its stake in W. R. Berkley by 49.9% in the 2nd quarter. Kiely Wealth Advisory Group Inc. now owns 580 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $46,000 after purchasing an additional 193 shares during the period. 68.82% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About W. R. Berkley

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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