DOWLING & PARTN Forecasts Higher Earnings for W.R. Berkley

W.R. Berkley Corporation (NYSE:WRB) – Equities research analysts at DOWLING & PARTN boosted their FY2026 EPS estimates for shares of W.R. Berkley in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday, October 20th. DOWLING & PARTN analyst B. Sullivan now forecasts that the insurance provider will earn $4.95 per share for the year, up from their prior estimate of $4.85. The consensus estimate for W.R. Berkley’s current full-year earnings is $4.91 per share.

W.R. Berkley (NYSE:WRB) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, October 19th. The insurance provider reported $1.17 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.15 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $3.74 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.82 billion. W.R. Berkley had a net margin of 12.53% and a return on equity of 19.63%. The company’s quarterly revenue was down .8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.10 earnings per share.

Several other equities research analysts have also weighed in on WRB. Bank of America reiterated an “underperform” rating and set a $68.00 price objective (down from $74.00) on shares of W.R. Berkley in a research note on Thursday, July 16th. Wolfe Research lowered shares of W.R. Berkley from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 1st. Morgan Stanley set a $70.00 price objective on W.R. Berkley and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 6th. Atlantic Securities set a $74.00 target price on W.R. Berkley in a report on Wednesday, July 15th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods restated a “market perform” rating on shares of W.R. Berkley in a report on Tuesday, July 21st. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have issued a Hold rating and six have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Reduce” and a consensus price target of $70.61.

W.R. Berkley Stock Performance

WRB stock opened at $75.61 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $28.07 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.27, a P/E/G ratio of 1.92 and a beta of 0.27. W.R. Berkley has a 12-month low of $62.87 and a 12-month high of $78.96. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $70.09 and its 200 day simple moving average is $69.30. The company has a current ratio of 0.37, a quick ratio of 0.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On W.R. Berkley

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Wedmont Private Capital boosted its position in W.R. Berkley by 1.8% during the third quarter. Wedmont Private Capital now owns 10,146 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $731,000 after purchasing an additional 182 shares during the period. Monument Capital Management grew its stake in W.R. Berkley by 32.6% in the 3rd quarter. Monument Capital Management now owns 5,101 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $345,000 after buying an additional 1,253 shares during the last quarter. CX Institutional grew its position in shares of W.R. Berkley by 10.5% in the third quarter. CX Institutional now owns 4,552 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $307,000 after purchasing an additional 433 shares during the last quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of W.R. Berkley by 13.9% during the 2nd quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 43,570 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $3,073,000 after purchasing an additional 5,316 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. increased its position in W.R. Berkley by 2.6% in the 2nd quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 9,467 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $668,000 after buying an additional 243 shares during the period. 68.82% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

W.R. Berkley Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 21st were paid a dividend of $0.10 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, September 21st. This represents a $0.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.5%. W.R. Berkley’s dividend payout ratio is 8.46%.

W.R. Berkley Company Profile

W.R. Berkley Corporation is an insurance holding company that operates through a group of specialized insurance businesses. The company primarily provides commercial property and casualty insurance, serving businesses, organizations and other commercial customers with coverage tailored to specific industries and risks.

Its products and services include workers’ compensation, commercial automobile, property, general liability, professional liability, directors and officers liability, excess and surplus lines, and other specialty insurance products.