W.R. Berkley Corporation $WRB Shares Acquired by Hsbc Holdings PLC

Hsbc Holdings PLC increased its position in W.R. Berkley Corporation (NYSE:WRB) by 104.1% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,735,958 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 885,417 shares during the quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC owned 0.46% of W.R. Berkley worth $121,934,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in WRB. Entrust Financial LLC acquired a new position in W.R. Berkley in the 4th quarter worth $25,000. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. grew its stake in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 210 shares in the last quarter. DV Equities LLC acquired a new stake in shares of W.R. Berkley during the fourth quarter valued at about $29,000. Triumph Capital Management purchased a new stake in shares of W.R. Berkley during the third quarter worth about $35,000. Finally, Quarry LP purchased a new stake in shares of W.R. Berkley during the fourth quarter worth about $39,000. 68.82% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

W.R. Berkley Trading Up 0.1%

Shares of NYSE WRB opened at $67.27 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 0.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $66.74 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $68.13. W.R. Berkley Corporation has a 52-week low of $62.87 and a 52-week high of $78.96. The stock has a market capitalization of $25.04 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.25, a PEG ratio of 3.18 and a beta of 0.30.

W.R. Berkley (NYSE:WRB) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, April 21st. The insurance provider reported $1.30 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.13 by $0.17. The company had revenue of $3.69 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.18 billion. W.R. Berkley had a return on equity of 18.92% and a net margin of 12.64%.The business’s revenue was up 1.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.01 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that W.R. Berkley Corporation will post 4.67 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

W.R. Berkley Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 2nd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, June 23rd will be paid a dividend of $0.10 per share. The ex-dividend date is 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 0.6%. W.R. Berkley’s payout ratio is presently 7.63%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages recently commented on WRB. Weiss Ratings downgraded W.R. Berkley from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 20th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised W.R. Berkley from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their target price for the company from $71.00 to $73.00 in a research report on Monday, June 8th. Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on W.R. Berkley from $73.00 to $72.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 6th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered shares of W.R. Berkley from an “overweight” rating to an “underweight” rating and dropped their price target for the stock from $64.00 to $58.00 in a research note on Monday, June 8th. Finally, Truist Financial cut their price target on shares of W.R. Berkley from $80.00 to $78.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Hold rating and four have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, W.R. Berkley presently has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and a consensus target price of $68.31.

W.R. Berkley 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.