Short Interest in W.R. Berkley Corporation (NYSE:WRB) Drops By 29.6%

W.R. Berkley Corporation (NYSE:WRB) was the recipient of a large decrease in short interest during the month of December. As of December 31st, there was short interest totaling 17,506,059 shares, a decrease of 29.6% from the December 15th total of 24,860,492 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 2,679,124 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 6.5 days. Approximately 6.0% of the company’s shares are sold short. Approximately 6.0% of the company’s shares are sold short. Based on an average trading volume of 2,679,124 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 6.5 days.

W.R. Berkley Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:WRB traded down $0.86 during trading on Friday, hitting $67.85. 3,279,517 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,263,809. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $71.86 and its 200-day simple moving average is $72.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 0.37 and a current ratio of 0.37. The company has a market capitalization of $25.79 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.25, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.52 and a beta of 0.39. W.R. Berkley has a 1-year low of $56.86 and a 1-year high of $78.96.

W.R. Berkley (NYSE:WRB) last posted its earnings results on Monday, October 20th. The insurance provider reported $1.10 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.07 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $3.77 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.16 billion. W.R. Berkley had a net margin of 13.01% and a return on equity of 18.86%. W.R. Berkley’s quarterly revenue was up 10.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.93 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that W.R. Berkley will post 4.33 EPS for the current fiscal year.

W.R. Berkley Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 29th. Investors of record on Monday, December 15th were paid a $0.09 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 15th. This represents a $0.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.5%. W.R. Berkley’s dividend payout ratio is presently 7.56%.

More W.R. Berkley News

Here are the key news stories impacting W.R. Berkley this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Major shareholder Sumitomo (Mitsui) has been buying sizeable blocks of WRB across Jan. 12–16, repeatedly increasing its stake with purchases at prices around the high-$60s; the purchases represent multi‑million dollar commitments and act as an insider vote of confidence. Mitsui Sumitomo buys Berkley (WRB) shares
• Neutral Sentiment: The purchases are all formally disclosed in SEC ownership filings, which confirm the trades and updated stake size but show each increase is under 1% individually; transparency reduces uncertainty but the moves are gradual. SEC ownership filing
• Neutral Sentiment: Cantor Fitzgerald trimmed its price target modestly while keeping an overweight stance, reflecting slightly lower upside from that analyst but continued support; other shops remain mixed, leaving consensus near the low‑$70s. Cantor Fitzgerald lowers expectations
• Negative Sentiment: Technicals and analyst mix are headwinds: WRB is trading below its 50‑ and 200‑day moving averages (~$72), and several analysts carry hold/underweight views or lower targets, which can cap near‑term upside despite insider buying.

Insider Transactions at W.R. Berkley

In related news, major shareholder Sumitomo Insurance Co L. Mitsui acquired 325,000 shares of W.R. Berkley stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 13th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $68.03 per share, for a total transaction of $22,109,750.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the insider owned 52,496,504 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,571,337,167.12. The trade was a 0.62% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Over the last quarter, insiders bought 4,454,916 shares of company stock worth $309,561,870. 23.30% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On W.R. Berkley

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Applied Capital LLC FL raised its stake in W.R. Berkley by 0.9% during the fourth quarter. Applied Capital LLC FL now owns 29,675 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $2,081,000 after acquiring an additional 278 shares in the last quarter. Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management raised its holdings in shares of W.R. Berkley by 49.6% in the fourth quarter. Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management now owns 37,368 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $2,620,000 after purchasing an additional 12,383 shares during the last quarter. Elser Financial Planning Inc bought a new position in W.R. Berkley during the fourth quarter valued at about $336,000. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in W.R. Berkley by 1.4% during the fourth quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 190,976 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $13,391,000 after purchasing an additional 2,721 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mn Services Vermogensbeheer B.V. increased its position in shares of W.R. Berkley by 3.8% during the fourth quarter. Mn Services Vermogensbeheer B.V. now owns 116,868 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $8,195,000 after buying an additional 4,318 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 68.82% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

WRB has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price target on shares of W.R. Berkley from $73.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 6th. UBS Group reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $87.00 price objective on shares of W.R. Berkley in a research note on Friday, November 7th. Mizuho set a $69.00 target price on W.R. Berkley in a research note on Wednesday. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their price target on W.R. Berkley from $76.00 to $75.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, October 21st. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of W.R. Berkley in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have given a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $73.00.

About W.R. Berkley

W. R. Berkley Corporation (NYSE: WRB) is a publicly traded insurance holding company that underwrites and sells commercial property and casualty insurance, specialty insurance products, and reinsurance. Headquartered in Greenwich, Connecticut, the company operates a portfolio of underwriting businesses that focus on niche and specialty commercial risks, offering coverage tailored to industries such as transportation, construction, professional services and other commercial lines.

The company’s product mix includes primary and excess casualty, property, professional liability, environmental and other specialty lines, together with treaty and facultative reinsurance solutions.