Kentucky Retirement Systems Sells 285 Shares of W. R. Berkley Co. (NYSE:WRB)

Kentucky Retirement Systems lowered its position in W. R. Berkley Co. (NYSE:WRB) by 1.4% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 20,659 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 285 shares during the period. Kentucky Retirement Systems’ holdings in W. R. Berkley were worth $1,209,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Wedmont Private Capital raised its position in W. R. Berkley by 2.3% during the 4th quarter. Wedmont Private Capital now owns 8,038 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $456,000 after purchasing an additional 181 shares during the last quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC grew its stake in shares of W. R. Berkley by 1.5% in the fourth quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 15,632 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $915,000 after acquiring an additional 235 shares during the period. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC boosted its holdings in shares of W. R. Berkley by 1.8% in the fourth quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 13,631 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $773,000 after buying an additional 242 shares during the last quarter. PFS Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of W. R. Berkley by 51.1% during the 3rd quarter. PFS Partners LLC now owns 719 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $41,000 after buying an additional 243 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Private Advisor Group LLC boosted its position in shares of W. R. Berkley by 1.2% in the fourth quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 21,588 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $1,263,000 after purchasing an additional 257 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 68.82% of the company’s stock.

W. R. Berkley Trading Up 1.0 %

Shares of NYSE WRB opened at $61.01 on Monday. W. R. Berkley Co. has a 52-week low of $50.73 and a 52-week high of $65.49. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $59.22 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $59.27. The company has a quick ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 0.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34. The stock has a market capitalization of $23.25 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.98, a PEG ratio of 1.56 and a beta of 0.67.

W. R. Berkley (NYSE:WRB) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, January 27th. The insurance provider reported $1.13 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates 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, analysts anticipate that W. R. Berkley Co. will post 4.33 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

W. R. Berkley Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 27th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 16th were paid a $0.08 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 16th. This represents a $0.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.52%. W. R. Berkley’s payout ratio is 7.33%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

WRB has been the topic of several recent research reports. Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on W. R. Berkley in a report on Thursday, December 5th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $65.00 price objective on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and issued a $63.00 price objective on shares of W. R. Berkley in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised shares of W. R. Berkley from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $69.00 target price for the company in a report on Monday, November 25th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of W. R. Berkley from $67.00 to $70.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded W. R. Berkley from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $64.36.

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.