Bank of Nova Scotia Lowers Holdings in W.R. Berkley Corporation $WRB

Bank of Nova Scotia trimmed its holdings in W.R. Berkley Corporation (NYSE:WRB) by 9.7% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 310,476 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 33,327 shares during the quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia’s holdings in W.R. Berkley were worth $20,578,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in WRB. Mitsui Sumitomo Insurance Co. Ltd. bought a new stake in shares of W.R. Berkley during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $3,542,919,000. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in W.R. Berkley by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 37,033,581 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $2,596,795,000 after acquiring an additional 309,828 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp increased its holdings in W.R. Berkley by 1.0% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 14,921,114 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $1,143,256,000 after acquiring an additional 149,605 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in W.R. Berkley in the 4th quarter worth $435,752,000. Finally, Invesco Ltd. lifted its stake in W.R. Berkley by 0.4% in the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 4,913,337 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $344,523,000 after purchasing an additional 20,538 shares in the last quarter. 68.82% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

W.R. Berkley News Roundup

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

• Positive Sentiment: WRB is being highlighted as a top long-term momentum stock, with coverage pointing to strong style scores and market-beating characteristics that can support investor demand. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts and market commentary are reacting favorably to W.R. Berkley’s Q2 results, with reports saying the earnings beat and ongoing share buybacks are reinforcing the bull case and leading some firms to raise price targets. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: WRB is also being described as a strong value stock and a portfolio “ballast,” which may appeal to investors looking for quality, defensive exposure in property and casualty insurance. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: One report compares W.R. Berkley with Allstate on value metrics, which is more of a relative-stock-selection piece than a clear catalyst for the shares. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Another article notes that W.R. Berkley’s baby bonds offer 7%+ yields at investment-grade risk, which supports the company’s credit profile but is unlikely to move the common stock materially on its own. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: There is some caution in the analyst community, as one report says W.R. Berkley currently carries an average rating of “Reduce,” suggesting valuation or upside concerns remain. Article Title

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have commented on WRB shares. UBS Group set a $68.00 price objective on shares of W.R. Berkley and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, April 27th. Evercore reiterated an “underperform” rating and issued a $68.00 target price on shares of W.R. Berkley in a research report on Friday, July 10th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reissued a “market perform” rating on shares of W.R. Berkley in a research note on Tuesday. Atlantic Securities set a $74.00 price target on W.R. Berkley in a report on Wednesday, July 15th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reaffirmed an “underweight” rating and issued a $68.00 price objective (up from $67.00) on shares of W.R. Berkley in a research note on Tuesday. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have issued a Hold rating and six have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Reduce” and an average price target of $70.44.

W.R. Berkley Price Performance

NYSE:WRB opened at $75.48 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $28.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.50, a PEG ratio of 3.51 and a beta of 0.29. W.R. Berkley Corporation has a 1 year low of $62.87 and a 1 year high of $78.96. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $69.20 and a 200-day simple moving average of $68.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 0.36 and a quick ratio of 0.36.

W.R. Berkley (NYSE:WRB) last released 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. W.R. Berkley had a return on equity of 19.49% and a net margin of 12.94%.The firm had revenue of $3.72 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.28 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.05 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts forecast that W.R. Berkley Corporation will post 4.75 EPS for the current year.

W.R. Berkley Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 2nd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, June 23rd were paid a dividend of $0.10 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, June 23rd. This is a positive change from W.R. Berkley’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.09. This represents a $0.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.5%. W.R. Berkley’s payout ratio is presently 8.21%.

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.