Victory Capital Management Inc. Sells 3,194,745 Shares of W. R. Berkley Co. (NYSE:WRB)

Victory Capital Management Inc. lowered its position in shares of W. R. Berkley Co. (NYSE:WRB) by 75.8% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,021,233 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 3,194,745 shares during the period. Victory Capital Management Inc. owned 0.27% of W. R. Berkley worth $57,935,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. MJP Associates Inc. ADV lifted its holdings in shares of W. R. Berkley by 4.0% during the second quarter. MJP Associates Inc. ADV now owns 4,915 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $386,000 after buying an additional 188 shares in the last quarter. Atria Investments Inc increased its position in W. R. Berkley by 0.4% during the first quarter. Atria Investments Inc now owns 50,637 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $4,478,000 after acquiring an additional 189 shares during the period. Kiely Wealth Advisory Group Inc. raised its stake in W. R. Berkley by 49.9% in the 2nd quarter. Kiely Wealth Advisory Group Inc. now owns 580 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $46,000 after purchasing an additional 193 shares in the last quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. boosted its holdings in W. R. Berkley by 0.5% in the 2nd quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 39,857 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $3,132,000 after purchasing an additional 202 shares during the period. Finally, Armstrong Advisory Group Inc. grew its position in shares of W. R. Berkley by 51.0% during the 3rd quarter. Armstrong Advisory Group Inc. now owns 619 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 209 shares in the last quarter. 68.82% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

W. R. Berkley Price Performance

WRB stock opened at $59.65 on Friday. W. R. Berkley Co. has a 1 year low of $45.44 and a 1 year high of $61.96. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34, a current ratio of 0.36 and a quick ratio of 0.36. The stock has a market cap of $22.73 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.29, a P/E/G ratio of 1.20 and a beta of 0.62. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $58.41 and a 200 day simple moving average of $56.06.

W. R. Berkley (NYSE:WRB) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, October 21st. The insurance provider reported $0.93 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.92 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $2.93 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.93 billion. W. R. Berkley had a return on equity of 20.41% and a net margin of 11.96%. W. R. Berkley’s revenue was up 10.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.90 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that W. R. Berkley Co. will post 3.96 EPS for the current fiscal year.

W. R. Berkley Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 23rd were issued a dividend of $0.08 per share. This represents a $0.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.54%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, September 23rd. W. R. Berkley’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 8.21%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

WRB has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of W. R. Berkley from $67.00 to $69.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Bank of America lifted their price objective on W. R. Berkley from $73.00 to $76.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Evercore ISI increased their target price on W. R. Berkley from $57.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Barclays assumed coverage on W. R. Berkley in a research note on Wednesday, September 4th. They issued an “underweight” rating and a $56.00 price target for the company. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of W. R. Berkley from $63.00 to $68.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $63.08.

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.