W. R. Berkley Corporation (NYSE:WRB) recently established two independent operating units - Berkley Entertainment & Sports and Berkley Environmental. These units were part of Berkley Specialty Underwriting Managers (Berkley Specialty).
Berkley Entertainment & Sports will provide commercial general liability, umbrella, inland marine, workers’ compensation, business automobile and property coverages. While Berkley Environmental will offer world-wide customized environmental risk solutions for a expanded range of businesses.
This Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) property and casualty insurer believes establishing these units will help the company heighten focus on niche business and leverage expertise to capitalize on growth opportunities.
W.R. Berkley sets sights on strategic initiatives to capitalize on opportunities and in turn, ramp up its growth profile. It had formed Berkley Insurance Asia to tap the commercial insurance markets of North Asia and Southeast Asia, besides establishing Berkley International Seguros Colombia S.A. to better serve customers in Colombia. Other endeavors include formations of Berkley Cyber Risk Solutions and Berkley Transactional, which were tagged to the company’s insurance segment. W.R. Berkley has been expanding consistently to strengthen its position further and benefit from the improving market conditions.
With new units continuing to grow and established businesses no longer losing volume (retention rate was approximately 80% for ten successive quarters), the overall growth is clearly visible. The expected long-term earnings growth is 9%.
Shares of W.R. Berkley gained 19.77% over a year, outperforming the Zacks categorized Property and Casualty Insurance industry’s 16.37% gain. The company’s focus on fueling growth through inorganic and organic endeavors, rate increases, reserving discipline and a solid balance sheet should continue to drive the shares higher.
Stocks to Consider
Better-ranked property and casualty insurers are First American Financial Corporation (NYSE:FAF) , State National Companies, Inc. (NASDAQ:SNC) and American Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:AFG) .
First American Financial provides financial services. The company delivered positive surprises in the last four quarters with an average beat of 14.12%. The company sports a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.
State National Companies provides property and casualty insurance in the U.S. The company delivered positive surprises in two of the last four quarters, with average beat of 20.54%. The company carries Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).
American Financial engages primarily in property and casualty insurance, with a focus on specialized commercial products for businesses. The company delivered positive surprises in three of last four quarters, with an average beat of 11.47%. The company holds a Zacks Rank #2.
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W.R. Berkley Corporation (WRB): Free Stock Analysis Report
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American Financial Group, Inc. (AFG): Free Stock Analysis Report
State National Companies, Inc. (SNC): Free Stock Analysis Report
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