DnB Asset Management AS Increases Stake in W. R. Berkley Co. (NYSE:WRB)

DnB Asset Management AS boosted its stake in W. R. Berkley Co. (NYSE:WRB) by 2.4% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 60,566 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after buying an additional 1,435 shares during the period. DnB Asset Management AS’s holdings in W. R. Berkley were worth $3,544,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also bought and sold shares of WRB. Whipplewood Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of W. R. Berkley in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in W. R. Berkley during the fourth quarter valued at $42,000. Crowley Wealth Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of W. R. Berkley during the 4th quarter valued at $59,000. Tortoise Investment Management LLC increased its stake in shares of W. R. Berkley by 69.9% in the 4th quarter. Tortoise Investment Management LLC now owns 1,313 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $77,000 after acquiring an additional 540 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. purchased a new position in W. R. Berkley during the 4th quarter valued at about $79,000. 68.82% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on WRB shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price objective on shares of W. R. Berkley from $60.00 to $61.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Morgan Stanley began coverage on W. R. Berkley in a research note on Thursday, December 5th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $65.00 price target on the stock. Barclays boosted their target price on W. R. Berkley from $50.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Royal Bank of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and set a $63.00 price target on shares of W. R. Berkley in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of W. R. Berkley from $67.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $64.36.

W. R. Berkley Stock Down 0.1 %

Shares of W. R. Berkley stock opened at $71.18 on Tuesday. W. R. Berkley Co. has a twelve month low of $50.73 and a twelve month high of $76.38. The company has a quick ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 0.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34. The company’s 50 day moving average is $61.93 and its 200 day moving average is $60.28. The company has a market cap of $26.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.31, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.56 and a beta of 0.63.

W. R. Berkley (NYSE:WRB) last announced its earnings results on Monday, January 27th. The insurance provider reported $1.13 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.95 by $0.18. W. R. Berkley had a net margin of 12.88% and a return on equity of 20.83%. Research analysts anticipate that W. R. Berkley Co. will post 4.33 EPS for the current year.

W. R. Berkley Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 3rd were given a $0.08 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $0.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.45%. W. R. Berkley’s payout ratio is 7.34%.

About W. R. Berkley

W. R. Berkley Corporation, an insurance holding company, operates as a commercial lines writers worldwide. It operates in two segments, Insurance and Reinsurance & Monoline Excess. The Insurance segment underwrites commercial insurance business, including excess and surplus lines, admitted lines, and specialty personal lines.