Mizuho Cuts W.R. Berkley (NYSE:WRB) Price Target to $72.00

W.R. Berkley (NYSE:WRB) had its price target decreased by Mizuho from $74.00 to $72.00 in a research note released on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. Mizuho currently has a neutral rating on the insurance provider’s stock.

A number of other equities analysts have also weighed in on WRB. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on shares of W.R. Berkley from $72.00 to $75.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, July 6th. Truist Financial lifted their target price on shares of W.R. Berkley from $78.00 to $83.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 21st. Evercore reissued an “underperform” rating and set a $68.00 price target on shares of W.R. Berkley in a research note on Friday, July 10th. Bank of America restated an “underperform” rating and set a $68.00 price objective (down from $74.00) on shares of W.R. Berkley in a report on Thursday, July 16th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $74.00 price objective (up from $70.00) on shares of W.R. Berkley in a research report on Thursday, July 9th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have given a Hold rating and six have issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Reduce” and a consensus target price of $70.83.

W.R. Berkley Stock Down 0.3%

Shares of NYSE:WRB opened at $69.89 on Wednesday. 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 company has a market capitalization of $25.95 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.35, a P/E/G ratio of 1.74 and a beta of 0.28. W.R. Berkley has a 52-week low of $62.87 and a 52-week high of $78.96. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $70.85 and its 200-day simple moving average is $68.73.

W.R. Berkley (NYSE:WRB) last announced its earnings results on Monday, July 20th. The insurance provider reported $1.27 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.08 by $0.19. The firm had revenue of $3.72 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.28 billion. W.R. Berkley had a net margin of 12.94% and a return on equity of 19.44%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.05 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that W.R. Berkley will post 4.87 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

W.R. Berkley Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 21st will be given a $0.10 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 21st. This represents a $0.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.6%. W.R. Berkley’s dividend payout ratio is presently 8.21%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On W.R. Berkley

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. IFP Advisors Inc increased its holdings in W.R. Berkley by 44.7% in the 2nd quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 466 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 144 shares in the last quarter. Valeo Financial Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of W.R. Berkley by 4.5% during the second quarter. Valeo Financial Advisors LLC now owns 3,774 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $266,000 after purchasing an additional 161 shares in the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. boosted its position in shares of W.R. Berkley by 3.9% in the second quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 4,962 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $350,000 after buying an additional 184 shares during the period. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. boosted its position in shares of W.R. Berkley by 4.8% in the fourth quarter. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. now owns 4,419 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $310,000 after buying an additional 203 shares during the period. Finally, Cassaday & Co Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in shares of W.R. Berkley by 3.5% in the first quarter. Cassaday & Co Wealth Management LLC now owns 6,057 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $401,000 after buying an additional 206 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 68.82% of the company’s stock.

About W.R. Berkley

W.R. Berkley Corporation (NYSE: WRB) is an insurance holding company that operates through a group of property and casualty insurance businesses. The company provides commercial insurance and reinsurance products for businesses, organizations and other insurance companies, with an emphasis on specialty and complex risks.

Its offerings include commercial property and casualty coverage, excess and surplus lines, professional liability, workers’ compensation, commercial automobile insurance, marine insurance and other specialty products.