W. R. Berkley (NYSE:WRB) Announces Earnings Results, Misses Expectations By $0.07 EPS

W. R. Berkley (NYSE:WRB) issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday. The insurance provider reported $1.01 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.08 by ($0.07), Zacks reports. W. R. Berkley had a net margin of 12.88% and a return on equity of 20.83%.

W. R. Berkley Stock Down 2.1 %

Shares of NYSE WRB traded down $1.45 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $67.35. The company had a trading volume of 1,828,197 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,799,328. The company has a current ratio of 0.36, a quick ratio of 0.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $64.54 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $61.42. The company has a market capitalization of $25.54 billion, a PE ratio of 15.44, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.56 and a beta of 0.40. W. R. Berkley has a one year low of $50.73 and a one year high of $76.38.

W. R. Berkley Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Investors of record on Monday, March 3rd were given a $0.08 dividend. This represents a $0.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.48%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 3rd. W. R. Berkley’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 7.34%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and issued a $63.00 target price on shares of W. R. Berkley in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Truist Financial lifted their target price on W. R. Berkley from $68.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company cut W. R. Berkley from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and dropped their price objective for the stock from $70.00 to $69.00 in a report on Wednesday, April 9th. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price objective on shares of W. R. Berkley from $57.00 to $66.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, April 11th. Finally, Bank of America reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $74.00 price target (up previously from $73.00) on shares of W. R. Berkley in a research note on Tuesday, April 1st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $66.59.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On W. R. Berkley

A hedge fund recently raised its stake in W. R. Berkley stock. Brighton Jones LLC increased its holdings in shares of W. R. Berkley Co. (NYSE:WRB) by 75.6% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 50,503 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 21,737 shares during the period. Brighton Jones LLC’s holdings in W. R. Berkley were worth $2,955,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC. 68.82% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.