Harbor Investment Advisory LLC Reduces Holdings in W. R. Berkley Co. as Insurance Provider Surpasses Earnings Estimates

As of the second quarter of 2023, Harbor Investment Advisory LLC has reduced its holdings in W. R. Berkley Co. (NYSE:WRB) by 70.5% according to its recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor now owns 900 shares of the insurance provider’s stock, having sold 2,150 shares during the period. At the time of its most recent SEC filing, Harbor Investment Advisory LLC’s holdings in W. R. Berkley were valued at $54,000.

W. R. Berkley, a prominent player in the insurance industry, announced its earnings results on July 20th, 2023. The company reported earnings per share (EPS) of $1.14 for the quarter, surpassing the consensus estimate of $1.07 by $0.07. The firm recorded a revenue of $3 billion during this period, exceeding analyst estimates of $2.57 billion.

Furthermore, W.R Berkley exhibited a net margin of 10.85% and a return on equity of 17.65%. In terms of year-on-year growth, the company’s quarterly revenue demonstrated an increase of 19.2%. Comparatively, during the same period in the previous year, W.R Berkley had reported earnings per share amounting to $1.12.

Equities research analysts predict that W.R Berkley Co.’s earnings per share for the ongoing fiscal year will amount to approximately 4.52.

For those interested in further details about this financial update on W.R Berkley Co., please refer to our latest stock report on WRB for comprehensive information and analysis.

Please note that all information mentioned here is accurate as per September 25th, 2023.

Changes in Positions of Institutional Investors in W.R. Berkley and Analyst Recommendations

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in W. R. Berkley, a prominent insurance provider. Driehaus Capital Management LLC, for instance, has increased its holdings in shares of W. R. Berkley by 38.0% during the fourth quarter, now owning 124,393 shares valued at $9,027,000. Mackenzie Financial Corp and Assetmark Inc. have also seen growth in their holdings by 18.3% and 7,369.2% respectively.

Another notable institutional investor is Fifth Third Bancorp which experienced a 20.5% increase in its holdings during the first quarter, now owning 4,168 shares valued at $260,000.

Asset Management One Co. Ltd., on the other hand, has raised its holdings by 4.3% during the first quarter and currently owns 94,388 shares valued at $5,877,000.

Overall, these institutional investors own approximately 66.34% of W.R. Berkley’s stock.

As of Monday September 25th, NYSE:WRB opened at $64.91 with a market capitalization of $16.72 billion and a PE ratio of 14.27 along with a beta value of 0.63.

W.R Berkley has announced that it will pay a quarterly dividend on Wednesday October 4th to its shareholders as of Monday September 25th who will receive a dividend of $0.11 per share.The ex-dividend date is set for Friday September22nd.The company’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently stands at9.67%.

Various research firms have recently provided their opinions about WRB stocks.Wells Fargo & Company reduced its price target from $76 to$75.Furthermore according to stocknews.com ,a new platform for business news coverage,recommends buying the company’s shares.Three other equities research analysts have rated the stock as hold and seven others have given a buy rating.Bloomberg also supports our recommendation by assigning the stock with a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a target price of $78.