W.R. Berkley logged a -0.2% change during today's morning session, and is now trading at a price of $69.99 per share.
Over the last year, W.R. Berkley logged a -5.0% change, with its stock price reaching a high of $75.53 and a low of $55.5. Over the same period, the stock underperformed the S&P 500 index by -28.0%. As of April 2023, the company's 50-day average price was $68.72. W. R. Berkley Corporation, an insurance holding company, operates as a commercial lines writer in the United States and internationally. Based in Greenwich, CT, the large-cap Finance company has 8,186 full time employees. W.R. Berkley has offered a 0.6% dividend yield over the last 12 months.
The Company May Be Profitable, but Its Balance Sheet Is Highly Leveraged:
| 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue (MM) | $7,692 | $7,902 | $8,099 | $9,455 | $11,166 | $11,935 |
| Revenue Growth | n/a | 2.74% | 2.49% | 16.75% | 18.1% | 6.89% |
| Interest Income (MM) | $157 | $153 | $151 | $147 | $130 | $127 |
| Operating Margins | 11% | 11% | 9% | 14% | 15% | 15% |
| Net Margins | 8% | 9% | 7% | 11% | 12% | 11% |
| Net Income (MM) | $649 | $684 | $533 | $1,031 | $1,385 | $1,367 |
| Depreciation & Amort. (MM) | $131 | $113 | $135 | $130 | $56 | $52 |
| Earnings Per Share | $2249.07 | $3534.42 | $1882.37 | $3685.5 | $4955.8 | -$84.52 |
| EPS Growth | n/a | 57.15% | -46.74% | 95.79% | 34.47% | -101.71% |
| Diluted Shares (MM) | 274 | 275 | 267 | 265 | 265 | 258 |
| Free Cash Flow (MM) | $570 | $1,083 | $1,556 | $2,184 | $2,569 | $3,026 |
| Current Ratio | 1.45 | 1.42 | 1.33 | 1.43 | 1.34 | 1.31 |
| Total Debt (MM) | $19,324 | $20,457 | $22,221 | $25,350 | $26,979 | $29,106 |
| Net Debt / EBITDA | 19.62 | 20.11 | 23.63 | 16.84 | 14.38 | 15.4 |
W.R. Berkley has growing revenues and no capital expenditures, decent operating margins with a stable trend, and irregular cash flows. However, the firm suffers from declining EPS growth and a highly leveraged balance sheet.
W.R. Berkley's Valuation Is in Line With Its Sector Averages:
W.R. Berkley has a trailing twelve month P/E ratio of 13.9, compared to an average of 12.38 for the Finance sector. Based on its EPS guidance of $5.79, the company has a forward P/E ratio of 11.9. The -57.3% compound average growth rate of W.R. Berkley's historical and projected earnings per share yields a PEG ratio of -0.24. This indicates that its shares are overvalued.Furthermore, W.R. Berkley is likely overvalued compared to the book value of its equity, since its P/B ratio of 2.61 is higher than the sector average of 1.58.
There's an Analyst Consensus of Some Upside Potential for W.R. Berkley:
The 12 analysts following W.R. Berkley have set target prices ranging from $62.0 to $85.0 per share, for an average of $75.71 with a buy rating. As of April 2023, the company is trading -9.2% away from its average target price, indicating that there is an analyst consensus of some upside potential.
W.R. Berkley has a very low short interest because 1.7% of the company's shares are sold short. Institutions own 68.6% of the company's shares, and the insider ownership rate stands at 24.68%, suggesting a large amount of insider shareholders. The largest shareholder is Vanguard Group Inc, whose 9% stake in the company is worth $1,702,949,314.
