W. R. Berkley
Market Cap
US$12.9b
Last Updated
2020/01/19 23:32 UTC
Data Sources
Company Financials +
Executive Summary
W. R. Berkley Corporation, an insurance holding company, operates as a commercial lines writer in the United States and internationally.
Rewards
Risk Analysis
Earnings are forecast to decline by an average of -4.3% per year for the next 3 years
Snowflake Analysis
Solid track record average dividend payer.
Similar Companies
Share Price & News
How has W. R. Berkley's share price performed over time and what events caused price changes?
Latest Share Price and Events
Stable Share Price: WRB has not had significant price volatility in the past 3 months.
Market Performance
7 Day Return
3.7%
WRB
2.1%
US Insurance
1.7%
US Market
1 Year Return
39.5%
WRB
19.7%
US Insurance
23.6%
US Market
Return vs Industry: WRB exceeded the US Insurance industry which returned 20.4% over the past year.
Return vs Market: WRB exceeded the US Market which returned 24.7% over the past year.
Shareholder returns
| WRB | Industry | Market | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 7 Day | 3.7% | 2.1% | 1.7% |
| 30 Day | 2.1% | 1.6% | 3.5% |
| 90 Day | -0.8% | 4.8% | 11.7% |
| 1 Year | 43.0%39.5% | 22.8%19.7% | 26.2%23.6% |
| 3 Year | 70.2%58.0% | 37.5%26.8% | 53.2%43.3% |
| 5 Year | 136.2%111.5% | 74.8%53.7% | 75.5%56.1% |
Price Volatility Vs. Market
How volatile is W. R. Berkley's share price compared to the market and industry in the last 5 years?
Simply Wall St News
2 months ago | Simply Wall St
Is W. R. Berkley Corporation's (NYSE:WRB) CEO Overpaid Relative To Its Peers?2 months ago | Simply Wall St
Is Now The Time To Put W. R. Berkley (NYSE:WRB) On Your Watchlist?3 months ago | Simply Wall St
W. R. Berkley Corporation's (NYSE:WRB) 2.3% Dividend Yield Looks Pretty InterestingValuation
Is W. R. Berkley undervalued compared to its fair value and its price relative to the market?
19.3x
Price to Earnings (PE) ratio
Share Price vs. Fair Value
Below Fair Value: WRB ($68.29) is trading above our estimate of fair value ($62.68)
Significantly Below Fair Value: WRB is trading above our estimate of fair value.
Price To Earnings Ratio
PE vs Industry: WRB is poor value based on its PE Ratio (18.7x) compared to the Insurance industry average (16.4x).
PE vs Market: WRB is poor value based on its PE Ratio (19.1x) compared to the US market (18.9x).
Price to Earnings Growth Ratio
PEG Ratio: WRB's earnings are forecast to decline next year, so we can't calculate its PEG ratio.
Price to Book Ratio
PB vs Industry: WRB is overvalued based on its PB Ratio (2.1x) compared to the US Insurance industry average (1.2x).
Next Steps
Future Growth
How is W. R. Berkley forecast to perform in the next 1 to 3 years based on estimates from 5 analysts?
-4.0%
Forecasted annual earnings growth
Earnings and Revenue Growth Forecasts
Analyst Future Growth Forecasts
Earnings vs Savings Rate: WRB's earnings are forecast to decline over the next 3 years (-4.3% per year).
Earnings vs Market: WRB's earnings are forecast to decline over the next 3 years (-4.3% per year).
High Growth Earnings: WRB's earnings are forecast to decline over the next 3 years.
Revenue vs Market: WRB's revenue (3.6% per year) is forecast to grow slower than the US market (7.5% per year).
High Growth Revenue: WRB's revenue (3.6% per year) is forecast to grow slower than 20% per year.
Earnings per Share Growth Forecasts
Future Return on Equity
Future ROE: WRB's Return on Equity is forecast to be low in 3 years time (9.2%).
Next Steps
Past Performance
How has W. R. Berkley performed over the past 5 years?
3.5%
Historical annual earnings growth
Earnings and Revenue History
Quality Earnings: WRB has high quality earnings.
Growing Profit Margin: WRB's current net profit margins (8.8%) are higher than last year (8.6%).
Past Earnings Growth Analysis
Earnings Trend: WRB's earnings have grown by 3.5% per year over the past 5 years.
Accelerating Growth: WRB's earnings growth over the past year (4.8%) exceeds its 5-year average (3.5% per year).
Earnings vs Industry: WRB earnings growth over the past year (4.8%) exceeded the Insurance industry -11.3%.
Return on Equity
High ROE: WRB's Return on Equity (11.5%) is considered low.
Return on Assets
Return on Capital Employed
Next Steps
Financial Health
How is W. R. Berkley's financial position? (This company is analysed differently as a bank or financial institution)
Financial Position Analysis
Debt to Equity History and Analysis
Balance Sheet
Inventory Level: WRB has a low level of unsold assets or inventory.
Debt Coverage by Assets: WRB's debt is covered by short term assets (assets are 2.8x debt).
Financial Institutions Analysis
Asset Level: WRB's level of assets compared to its equity is low.
Allowance for Bad Loans: Insufficient data to determine if WRB has a sufficient allowance for bad loans.
Low Risk Liabilities: WRB reports no customer deposits, loans are made up entirely of externally borrowed funds.
Loan Level: Insufficient data to determine if WRB has an acceptable proportion of non-loan assets held.
Low Risk Deposits: WRB has advanced significantly more loans than the customer deposits it holds.
Level of Bad Loans: Insufficient data to determine if WRB has an appropriate level of bad loans.
Next Steps
Dividend
What is W. R. Berkley's current dividend yield, its reliability and sustainability?
1.81%
Current Dividend Yield
Dividend Yield vs Market
Current dividend yield vs market & industry
Notable Dividend: WRB's dividend (1.86%) is higher than the bottom 25% of dividend payers in the US market (1.4%).
High Dividend: WRB's dividend (1.86%) is low compared to the top 25% of dividend payers in the US market (3.66%).
Stability and Growth of Payments
Stable Dividend: WRB's dividend payments have been volatile in the past 10 years.
Growing Dividend: WRB's dividend payments have increased over the past 10 years.
Current Payout to Shareholders
Dividend Coverage: With its low payout ratio (11.6%), WRB's dividend payments are thoroughly covered by earnings.
Future Payout to Shareholders
Future Dividend Coverage: WRB's dividends in 3 years are forecast to be well covered by earnings (20.3% payout ratio).
Next Steps
Management
What is the CEO of W. R. Berkley's salary, the management and board of directors tenure and is there insider trading?
5.0yrs
Average management tenure
CEO
Rob Berkley (46yo)
4.3yrs
Tenure
US$11,852,861
Compensation
Mr. W. Robert Berkley Jr., also known as Rob, has been the President and Chief Executive Officer of W. R. Berkley Corporation since October 2015 and serves as its Director. Mr. Berkley served as President ...
CEO Compensation Analysis
Compensation vs Market: Rob's total compensation ($USD11.85M) is about average for companies of similar size in the US market ($USD10.76M).
Compensation vs Earnings: Rob's compensation has been consistent with company performance over the past year.
Management Age and Tenure
5.0yrs
Average Tenure
59yo
Average Age
Experienced Management: WRB's management team is seasoned and experienced (5 years average tenure).
Board Age and Tenure
19.0yrs
Average Tenure
67yo
Average Age
Experienced Board: WRB's board of directors are seasoned and experienced ( 19 years average tenure).
Insider Trading
Insider Buying: Insufficient data to determine if insiders have bought more shares than they have sold in the past 3 months.
Recent Insider Transactions
| Entity | Individual |
| Role | Member of the Board of Directors Independent Director |
| Shares | 77,000 |
| Max Price | US$66.61 |
Ownership Breakdown
Dilution of Shares: Shareholders have not been meaningfully diluted in the past year.
Management Team
Wm. Berkley (74yo)
Executive Chairman of the Board
- Tenure: 52.7yrs
- Compensation: US$12.33m
Ira Lederman (65yo)
Executive VP & Secretary
- Tenure: 23yrs
- Compensation: US$2.26m
Jim Shiel (59yo)
Executive Vice President of Investments
- Tenure: 4.6yrs
- Compensation: US$2.26m
Philip Welt (59yo)
Executive VP & General Counsel
- Tenure: 1yrs
Rob Berkley (46yo)
President
- Tenure: 4.3yrs
- Compensation: US$11.85m
Karen Horvath
Vice President of External Financial Communications
- Tenure: 5yrs
Scott Mansolillo
SVP & Chief Compliance Officer
- Tenure: 7.8yrs
Richard Baio (50yo)
Executive VP
- Tenure: 3.7yrs
- Compensation: US$1.88m
Lucille Sgaglione (69yo)
Executive Vice President
- Tenure: 9.7yrs
- Compensation: US$2.14m
Terrence Walker
Senior VP & Chief Information Officer
Board Members
Wm. Berkley (74yo)
Executive Chairman of the Board
- Tenure: 52.7yrs
- Compensation: US$12.33m
Mark Brockbank (67yo)
Independent Director
- Tenure: 19yrs
- Compensation: US$300.01k
Jack Nusbaum (78yo)
Independent Director
- Tenure: 52.7yrs
- Compensation: US$291.51k
Mark Shapiro (75yo)
Independent Director
- Tenure: 45.7yrs
- Compensation: US$341.51k
Ronald Blaylock (59yo)
Independent Director
- Tenure: 19yrs
- Compensation: US$300.51k
Rob Berkley (46yo)
President
- Tenure: 4.3yrs
- Compensation: US$11.85m
María Ferré Rangel (55yo)
Independent Director
- Tenure: 2.7yrs
- Compensation: US$304.51k
Mary Farrell (70yo)
Independent Director
- Tenure: 13.8yrs
- Compensation: US$336.51k
Collin Suttie
Chairman of Berkley Healthcare
- Tenure: 0.2yrs
Christopher Augostini (54yo)
Independent Director
- Tenure: 7.7yrs
- Compensation: US$305.01k
Company Information
W. R. Berkley Corporation's company bio, employee growth, exchange listings and data sources
Key Information
- Name: W. R. Berkley Corporation
- Ticker: WRB
- Exchange: NYSE
- Founded: 1967
- Industry: Property and Casualty Insurance
- Sector: Insurance
- Market Cap: US$12.923b
- Shares outstanding: 183.67m
- Website: https://www.berkley.com
Number of Employees
Location
- W. R. Berkley Corporation
- 475 Steamboat Road
- Greenwich
- Connecticut
- 6830
- United States
Listings
| Ticker | Exchange | Primary Security | Security Type | Country | Currency | Listed on |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| WRB | NYSE (New York Stock Exchange) | Yes | Common Stock | US | USD | Oct 1973 |
| WR1 | DB (Deutsche Boerse AG) | Yes | Common Stock | DE | EUR | Oct 1973 |
| 0HMZ | LSE (London Stock Exchange) | Yes | Common Stock | GB | USD | Oct 1973 |
| WRB * | BMV (Bolsa Mexicana de Valores) | Yes | Common Stock | MX | MXN | Oct 1973 |
Biography
W. R. Berkley Corporation, an insurance holding company, operates as a commercial lines writer in the United States and internationally. It operates through two segments, Insurance and Reinsurance. The Insurance segment underwrites commercial insurance business, including premises operations, commercial automobile, property, products liability, and professional liability lines. It also provides workers’ compensation, property casualty, general liability, professional liability, and excess and umbrella coverage insurance products, as well as coverages for technology, ambulatory surgery centers, chiropractors, and concierge physicians; accident and health insurance and reinsurance products; insurance for commercial risks; pollution liability and coverages to contractors, consultants, and owners; and liquor liability and inland marine coverage for small to medium-sized insureds. In addition, this segment offers directors and officers, and surety risk products, as well as products for life sciences and travel industries; coverage for excess liability, construction wrap-ups, and completed operations; cyber risk solutions; casualty, group life, and crime-related insurance products; personal lines insurance solutions, including home, condo/co-op, and collectibles; automobile, law enforcement, public officials and educator's legal, and employment practices liability, as well as incidental medical insurance products; and at-risk and alternative risk insurance program management services. The Reinsurance segment provides other insurance companies and self-insureds with assistance in managing their net risk through reinsurance on a portfolio basis through treaty reinsurance or on an individual basis through facultative reinsurance. W. R. Berkley Corporation was founded in 1967 and is headquartered in Greenwich, Connecticut.
Company Analysis and Financial Data Status
| Data | Last Updated (UTC time) |
|---|---|
| Company Analysis | 2020/01/19 23:32 |
| End of Day Share Price | 2020/01/17 00:00 |
| Earnings | 2019/09/30 |
| Annual Earnings | 2018/12/31 |
Unless specified all financial data is based on a yearly period but updated quarterly. This is known as Trailing Twelve Month (TTM) or Last Twelve Month (LTM) Data. Learn more here.