W.R. Berkley (NYSE:WRB) Given New $72.00 Price Target at Mizuho

W.R. Berkley (NYSE:WRB) had its price target lowered by equities researchers at Mizuho from $74.00 to $72.00 in a research report issued on Wednesday, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a “neutral” rating on the insurance provider’s stock. Mizuho’s price objective would suggest a potential upside of 1.49% from the stock’s current price.

Several other equities research analysts also recently issued reports on WRB. Bank of America reiterated an “underperform” rating and issued a $68.00 target price (down from $74.00) on shares of W.R. Berkley in a research note on Thursday, July 16th. Wolfe Research downgraded W.R. Berkley from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 1st. Oppenheimer set a $70.00 price objective on W.R. Berkley in a research note on Tuesday, July 21st. Evercore reaffirmed an “underperform” rating and issued a $68.00 price objective on shares of W.R. Berkley in a research report on Friday, July 10th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reiterated an “underweight” rating and set a $68.00 target price (up from $67.00) on shares of W.R. Berkley in a research note on Tuesday, July 21st. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have assigned a Hold rating and six have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Reduce” and a consensus price target of $70.83.

W.R. Berkley Stock Down 0.5%

Shares of NYSE:WRB traded down $0.34 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $70.94. The stock had a trading volume of 555,345 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,154,872. The company has a market cap of $26.34 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.57, a PEG ratio of 1.76 and a beta of 0.28. W.R. Berkley has a 12 month low of $62.87 and a 12 month high of $78.96. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $70.96 and its 200-day simple moving average is $68.75. The company has a quick ratio of 0.37, a current ratio of 0.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29.

W.R. Berkley (NYSE:WRB) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, July 20th. The insurance provider reported $1.27 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.08 by $0.19. The firm had revenue of $3.72 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.28 billion. W.R. Berkley had a net margin of 12.94% and a return on equity of 19.44%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 2.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.05 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that W.R. Berkley will post 4.87 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On W.R. Berkley

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. IFP Advisors Inc grew its holdings in shares of W.R. Berkley by 44.7% in the second quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 466 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 144 shares during the period. Valeo Financial Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of W.R. Berkley by 4.5% during the 2nd quarter. Valeo Financial Advisors LLC now owns 3,774 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $266,000 after purchasing an additional 161 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. increased its position in shares of W.R. Berkley by 3.9% during the 2nd quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 4,962 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $350,000 after purchasing an additional 184 shares during the last quarter. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. increased its position in shares of W.R. Berkley by 4.8% during the 4th quarter. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. now owns 4,419 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $310,000 after purchasing an additional 203 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Cassaday & Co Wealth Management LLC grew its position in W.R. Berkley by 3.5% during the first quarter. Cassaday & Co Wealth Management LLC now owns 6,057 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $401,000 after buying an additional 206 shares during the period. 68.82% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

W.R. Berkley Company Profile

W.R. Berkley Corporation (NYSE: WRB) is an insurance holding company that operates through a group of property and casualty insurance businesses. The company provides commercial insurance and reinsurance products for businesses, organizations and other insurance companies, with an emphasis on specialty and complex risks.

Its offerings include commercial property and casualty coverage, excess and surplus lines, professional liability, workers’ compensation, commercial automobile insurance, marine insurance and other specialty products.