W.R. Berkley Corporation (NYSE:WRB) to Issue $0.09 Quarterly Dividend

W.R. Berkley Corporation (NYSE:WRB - Get Free Report) announced a quarterly dividend on Friday, December 5th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 15th will be given a dividend of 0.09 per share by the insurance provider on Monday, December 29th. This represents a c) dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 15th.S&P 500's surge to new highs: Bull trap hiding in plain sight?W.R. Berkley has increased its dividend by an average of 0.1%annually over the last three years and has increased its dividend annually for the last 23 consecutive years. W.R. Berkley has a payout ratio of 7.5% indicating that its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Analysts expect W.R. Berkley to earn $4.71 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $0.36 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 7.6%. W.R. Berkley Stock PerformanceWRB traded down $0.07 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $69.27. 4,040,496 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,371,777. The company's fifty day moving average price is $74.54 and its 200-day moving average price is $72.84. The stock has a market capitalization of $26.33 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.55, a P/E/G ratio of 2.65 and a beta of 0.37. 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 has a 52-week low of $55.97 and a 52-week high of $78.96. Don't Overlook Hidden Gem Kinsale As Rallies To New HighsW.R. Berkley (NYSE:WRB - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, October 20th. The insurance provider reported $1.10 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.07 by $0.03. W.R. Berkley had a return on equity of 18.86% and a net margin of 13.01%.The company had revenue of $3.77 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.16 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.93 earnings per share. W.R. Berkley's revenue was up 10.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts expect that W.R. Berkley will post 4.33 EPS for the current year. Analyst Ratings ChangesSeveral equities research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Cantor Fitzgerald set a $78.00 price target on shares of W.R. Berkley in a research report on Monday, October 27th. UBS Group restated a "neutral" rating and set a $87.00 target price on shares of W.R. Berkley in a research report on Friday, November 7th. BMO Capital Markets cut shares of W.R. Berkley from a "market perform" rating to an "underperform" rating and set a $64.00 target price for the company. in a report on Wednesday, October 22nd. Wolfe Research began coverage on shares of W.R. Berkley in a research note on Monday, September 15th. They set a "peer perform" rating on the stock. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group cut their price objective on shares of W.R. Berkley from $76.00 to $75.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, October 21st. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, ten have given a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $74.85.Read Our Latest Report on WRBW.R. Berkley Company Profile (Get Free Report)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.See AlsoFive stocks we like better than W.R. BerkleyInvesting in the High PE Growth Stocks Why Amazon Could Be a $300 Stock Within WeeksWhat Percentage Gainers Tell Investors and Why They Don’t Tell the Whole StoryAdobe Gets Post-Earnings Lift: Long-Term Outlook Favors Upside3 Best Fintech Stocks for a Portfolio BoostMarketBeat Week in Review – 12/8 - 12/12This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.Should You Invest $1,000 in W.R. Berkley Right Now?Before you consider W.R. Berkley, you'll want to hear this.MarketBeat keeps track of Wall Street's top-rated and best performing research analysts and the stocks they recommend to their clients on a daily basis. MarketBeat has identified the five stocks that top analysts are quietly whispering to their clients to buy now before the broader market catches on... and W.R. Berkley wasn't on the list.While W.R. Berkley currently has a Hold rating among analysts, top-rated analysts believe these five stocks are better buys.View The Five Stocks Here