W.R. Berkley (NYSE:WRB) Major Shareholder Sumitomo Insurance Co Mitsui Purchases 33,966 Shares of Stock

W.R. Berkley Corporation (NYSE:WRB) major shareholder Sumitomo Insurance Co Mitsui bought 33,966 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 10th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $69.38 per share, with a total value of $2,356,561.08. Following the acquisition, the insider directly owned 56,532,622 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,922,233,314.36. This trade represents a 0.06% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Major shareholders that own at least 10% of a company’s shares are required to disclose their transactions with the SEC.

W.R. Berkley Trading Up 2.3%

WRB opened at $71.55 on Thursday. W.R. Berkley Corporation has a 52-week low of $59.55 and a 52-week high of $78.96. The firm has a market capitalization of $27.19 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.08, a P/E/G ratio of 2.92 and a beta of 0.37. The company has a quick ratio of 0.37, a current ratio of 0.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $69.05 and its 200-day moving average is $72.11.

W.R. Berkley (NYSE:WRB) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, January 26th. The insurance provider reported $1.13 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.14 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $3.18 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.18 billion. W.R. Berkley had a return on equity of 18.35% and a net margin of 12.10%.The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.13 EPS. Analysts expect that W.R. Berkley Corporation will post 4.33 EPS for the current fiscal year.

W.R. Berkley Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 29th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 15th were paid a dividend of $0.09 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 15th. This represents a $0.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.5%. W.R. Berkley’s dividend payout ratio is presently 8.09%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently issued reports on WRB. Truist Financial set a $80.00 price target on W.R. Berkley and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 27th. TD Cowen cut shares of W.R. Berkley from a “buy” rating to a “sell” rating and dropped their target price for the stock from $77.00 to $55.00 in a report on Tuesday, January 20th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target on shares of W.R. Berkley from $73.00 to $76.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 6th. Mizuho lowered their price objective on W.R. Berkley from $69.00 to $67.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 27th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $75.00 target price (down previously from $76.00) on shares of W.R. Berkley in a research note on Monday, February 2nd. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have assigned a Hold rating and four have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $69.67.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On W.R. Berkley

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Compass Financial Services Inc bought a new position in W.R. Berkley in the third quarter worth $26,000. Entrust Financial LLC bought a new stake in shares of W.R. Berkley during the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. grew its holdings in W.R. Berkley by 140.0% during the fourth quarter. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. now owns 360 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 210 shares during the period. Twin Peaks Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of W.R. Berkley in the second quarter worth about $27,000. Finally, Triumph Capital Management acquired a new position in W.R. Berkley in the 3rd quarter worth $35,000. Institutional investors own 68.82% of the company’s stock.

More W.R. Berkley News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Major shareholder Sumitomo Insurance increased its stake with three purchases (Feb. 9, 10 and 11) totaling about 97,996 shares (~$6.83M at the reported prices), nudging its ownership above 56.5M shares. Insider buying at these levels is a strong bullish signal for sentiment and supports the recent price rise. SEC Filing
• Neutral Sentiment: Management presented at the Bank of America Financial Services Conference; the transcript provides detail on strategy, underwriting, and reserve positioning that investors can use to judge forward outlook. Review the transcript for management commentary. Bank of America Conference Transcript
• Neutral Sentiment: Management also presented at UBS’s Financial Services Conference; that transcript offers additional color on capital deployment and loss-cost trends — useful but not market-moving by itself. UBS Conference Transcript
• Neutral Sentiment: UBS maintained a Hold rating on WRB, which suggests analysts are not yet ready to turn bullish despite insider buying — this may limit near-term analyst-driven upside. Article
• Neutral Sentiment: Recent media pieces are re‑examining WRB’s valuation after a strong multi‑year run, prompting debate about upside vs. current multiples and expected earnings growth — these discussions can increase volatility as investors reassess valuation. Is It Time To Reassess Valuation Look

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.