Overview

• U.S. commercial P&C insurer's Q2 EPS rose

• Gross premiums written hit record $4.1 bln, up 4% yr/yr

• Company returned $334 mln to shareholders via dividends and buybacks

Outlook

• Company says it continues to see attractive opportunities in select liability lines

• Company says current reinvestment rates exceed annual book yield, providing opportunity and flexibility

Result Drivers

• UNDERWRITING DISCIPLINE - Co said strong underwriting performance and focus on risk-adjusted returns drove results

• INVESTMENT INCOME - Higher yields and growth in invested assets led to record net investment income, per management

• FAVORABLE PRICING - Co cited attractive opportunities and favorable pricing in select liability lines as supporting premium growth

Company press release: ID:nBw5b7qrJa

Key Details

Metric	Beat/Miss	Actual	Consensus Estimate
Q2 EPS		$1.15
Q2 Combined Ratio		90.00%

Analyst Coverage

• The current average analyst rating on the shares is "hold" and the breakdown of recommendations is 2 "strong buy" or "buy", 13 "hold" and 6 "sell" or "strong sell"

• The average consensus recommendation for the property & casualty insurance peer group is "buy."

• Wall Street's median 12-month price target for W. R. Berkley Corp is $68.00, about 5% below its July 17 closing price of $71.61

• The stock recently traded at 15 times the next 12-month earnings vs. a P/E of 14 three months ago

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