Q3 2024 EPS Estimates for W. R. Berkley Co. Lifted by Analyst (NYSE:WRB)

W. R. Berkley Co. (NYSE:WRB) – Research analysts at Zacks Research lifted their Q3 2024 earnings per share (EPS) estimates for W. R. Berkley in a report issued on Thursday, September 26th. Zacks Research analyst T. De now anticipates that the insurance provider will post earnings per share of $0.95 for the quarter, up from their previous forecast of $0.94. The consensus estimate for W. R. Berkley’s current full-year earnings is $4.03 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for W. R. Berkley’s Q4 2024 earnings at $0.97 EPS, FY2024 earnings at $4.00 EPS, Q1 2025 earnings at $1.05 EPS, Q3 2025 earnings at $1.12 EPS, Q4 2025 earnings at $1.15 EPS, FY2025 earnings at $4.37 EPS, Q1 2026 earnings at $1.16 EPS and FY2026 earnings at $4.73 EPS.

WRB has been the subject of a number of other reports. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $57.00 target price on shares of W. R. Berkley in a report on Tuesday, July 23rd. StockNews.com upgraded W. R. Berkley from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 25th. TD Cowen started coverage on shares of W. R. Berkley in a research note on Monday, July 1st. They set a “buy” rating and a $103.00 target price on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on shares of W. R. Berkley from $62.00 to $59.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, July 23rd. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group cut shares of W. R. Berkley from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their price target for the stock from $88.00 to $83.00 in a report on Thursday, June 13th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, W. R. Berkley currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $77.70.

W. R. Berkley Stock Performance

Shares of WRB stock opened at $57.26 on Monday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $57.09 and a two-hundred day moving average of $71.81. The stock has a market capitalization of $21.96 billion, a PE ratio of 15.23, a P/E/G ratio of 1.05 and a beta of 0.62. The company has a quick ratio of 0.38, a current ratio of 0.38 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36. W. R. Berkley has a 52 week low of $41.37 and a 52 week high of $61.28.

W. R. Berkley (NYSE:WRB) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, July 22nd. The insurance provider reported $1.04 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.92 by $0.12. W. R. Berkley had a net margin of 12.05% and a return on equity of 21.34%. The business had revenue of $3.31 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.84 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.14 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.6% compared to the same quarter last year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On W. R. Berkley

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of WRB. APG Asset Management US Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of W. R. Berkley in the 4th quarter valued at about $2,878,000. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. raised its position in W. R. Berkley by 108.1% in the 4th quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. now owns 28,747 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $2,033,000 after purchasing an additional 14,933 shares during the last quarter. Cibc World Markets Corp boosted its stake in W. R. Berkley by 44.8% during the 4th quarter. Cibc World Markets Corp now owns 47,313 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $3,346,000 after purchasing an additional 14,639 shares during the period. Prudential PLC grew its position in W. R. Berkley by 205.9% during the 2nd quarter. Prudential PLC now owns 68,526 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $5,385,000 after purchasing an additional 46,125 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Stoneridge Investment Partners LLC acquired a new position in W. R. Berkley in the second quarter valued at $3,245,000. 68.82% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

W. R. Berkley Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 23rd were issued a $0.08 dividend. This represents a $0.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.56%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, September 23rd. W. R. Berkley’s payout ratio is 8.51%.

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.