W. R. Berkley (NYSE:WRB) Lowered to “Hold” Rating by StockNews.com

W. R. Berkley (NYSE:WRB) was downgraded by analysts at StockNews.com from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report issued on Thursday.

Several other research firms have also commented on WRB. Bank of America reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $74.00 price objective (up from $73.00) on shares of W. R. Berkley in a research report on Tuesday. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target on shares of W. R. Berkley from $60.00 to $61.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note 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 for the company. Barclays upped their price target on W. R. Berkley from $50.00 to $52.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of W. R. Berkley from $67.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $64.21.

W. R. Berkley Trading Down 0.7 %

Shares of W. R. Berkley stock opened at $69.73 on Thursday. W. R. Berkley has a 12-month low of $50.73 and a 12-month high of $76.38. The stock has a market cap of $26.44 billion, a PE ratio of 15.98, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.56 and a beta of 0.63. The company has a 50-day moving average of $62.37 and a two-hundred day moving average of $60.43. The company has a current ratio of 0.36, a quick ratio of 0.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34.

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

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Amundi increased its position in shares of W. R. Berkley by 43.1% during the fourth quarter. Amundi now owns 1,477,932 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $85,853,000 after acquiring an additional 444,986 shares in the last quarter. MML Investors Services LLC raised its position in W. R. Berkley by 49.0% during the third quarter. MML Investors Services LLC now owns 39,035 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $2,214,000 after acquiring an additional 12,830 shares in the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its stake in W. R. Berkley by 211.3% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 3,674,171 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $208,436,000 after purchasing an additional 2,493,758 shares during the last quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of W. R. Berkley by 72.6% during the 3rd quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 98,248 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $5,574,000 after acquiring an additional 41,320 shares during the period. Finally, Quantinno Capital Management LP lifted its holdings in W. R. Berkley by 105.4% during the 3rd quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 31,510 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $1,788,000 after purchasing an additional 16,167 shares during the last quarter. 68.82% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

W. R. Berkley Company Profile

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.