Sumitomo Insurance Co Mitsui Purchases 205,000 Shares of W.R. Berkley (NYSE:WRB) Stock

W.R. Berkley Corporation (NYSE:WRB) major shareholder Sumitomo Insurance Co Mitsui bought 205,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 29th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $70.77 per share, with a total value of $14,507,850.00. Following the acquisition, the insider directly owned 50,091,511 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,544,976,233.47. This represents a 0.41% 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 hyperlink. Large shareholders that own more than 10% of a company’s shares are required to disclose their transactions with the SEC.

W.R. Berkley Stock Performance

WRB opened at $70.73 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $26.88 billion, a PE ratio of 14.86, a PEG ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 0.37. The company has a current ratio of 0.37, a quick ratio of 0.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. W.R. Berkley Corporation has a twelve month low of $55.97 and a twelve month high of $78.96. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $73.01 and its 200 day moving average price is $72.52.

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

W.R. Berkley Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 29th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 15th were issued a dividend of $0.09 per share. This represents a $0.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 15th. W.R. Berkley’s payout ratio is currently 7.56%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have commented on WRB. UBS Group reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $87.00 target price on shares of W.R. Berkley in a research note on Friday, November 7th. Morgan Stanley set a $75.00 price target on shares of W.R. Berkley in a research report on Tuesday, December 16th. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their price objective on W.R. Berkley from $76.00 to $75.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, October 21st. Wells Fargo & Company set a $66.00 target price on W.R. Berkley and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 21st. Finally, Truist Financial set a $84.00 price target on W.R. Berkley and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 21st. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have given a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, W.R. Berkley currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $73.93.

Institutional Trading of W.R. Berkley

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its position in shares of W.R. Berkley by 75.6% during the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 50,503 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $2,955,000 after buying an additional 21,737 shares during the period. Kestra Advisory Services LLC lifted its stake in W.R. Berkley by 12.6% during the 1st quarter. Kestra Advisory Services LLC now owns 18,242 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $1,298,000 after acquiring an additional 2,041 shares in the last quarter. Ieq Capital LLC lifted its stake in W.R. Berkley by 56.4% during the 1st quarter. Ieq Capital LLC now owns 44,757 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $3,185,000 after acquiring an additional 16,138 shares in the last quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets boosted its holdings in W.R. Berkley by 15.8% during the 1st quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 727,994 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $51,804,000 after acquiring an additional 99,324 shares during the period. Finally, Magnetar Financial LLC acquired a new position in W.R. Berkley in the 1st quarter valued at about $509,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 68.82% of the company’s stock.

Key W.R. Berkley News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Sumitomo Insurance Co. Mitsui continued buying WRB stock across several late‑December trades, most recently acquiring 205,000 shares at ~$70.77 (bringing its reported holding to ~50.09M shares). The sequence of purchases (~234.6k on Dec 23, ~220k on Dec 24, ~220k on Dec 26 and ~205k on Dec 29) signals continued confidence from a >10% institutional owner and may support the stock. Sumitomo Insurance Buys WRB
• Positive Sentiment: W.R. Berkley named Erin Rotz president of Berkley Fire & Marine — an experienced inland marine and construction underwriting executive. The hire strengthens underwriting leadership in a specialty line that matters to Berkley’s earnings profile. Erin Rotz Appointment
• Neutral Sentiment: W.R. Berkley paid its quarterly dividend ($0.09; record Dec. 15, paid Dec. 29). The yield is modest (~0.5%) and unlikely to move the stock materially, but it maintains the company’s cash-return profile. Dividend and Company Data
• Neutral Sentiment: Large institutional holders (Vanguard, State Street, etc.) continue to own the bulk of shares (~69% combined), suggesting stability in the shareholder base but limited near‑term free float changes. Institutional Holdings
• Negative Sentiment: Brokerage activity is mixed — BMO cut WRB to “underperform” ($64 TP) and Barclays has an “underweight” with a $73 TP, offsetting some positive analyst views; consensus remains a “Hold” with an average target near $73.9. These downgrades can cap upside until fundamentals or guidance change. Analyst Notes & Targets

W.R. Berkley Company Profile

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.