W. R. Berkley Corporation (WRB) Earnings
W. R. Berkley Corporation is expected to report next earnings on July 20, 2026 (in NaN days), with a consensus EPS estimate of $1.09. WRB has beaten EPS estimates in 9 of its last 12 reported quarters (average surprise +3.8% over the last four).
| Report date | EPS est | EPS actual | Surprise | Revenue | Rev. surprise |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 21, 2026 | $1.13 | $1.30 | +15.0% | $3.1B | -2.4% |
| Jan 26, 2026 | $1.14 | $1.13 | -0.9% | $3.7B | +16.0% |
| Oct 20, 2025 | $1.11 | $1.10 | -0.9% | $3.8B | +19.5% |
| Jul 21, 2025 | $1.03 | $1.05 | +1.9% | $3.7B | +18.4% |
| Jan 27, 2025 | $0.96 | $1.13 | +17.8% | $3.7B | +25.0% |
| Oct 21, 2024 | $0.92 | $0.93 | +1.1% | $3.4B | +16.2% |
| Jul 22, 2024 | $0.92 | $1.04 | +13.0% | $3.3B | +16.5% |
| Jan 24, 2024 | $0.90 | $0.97 | +7.8% | $3.2B | -0.7% |
| Jul 20, 2023 | $0.71 | $0.76 | +7.0% | $3.0B | -2.7% |
| Apr 20, 2023 | $0.79 | $0.67 | -15.2% | $2.9B | +0.8% |
| Jan 26, 2023 | $0.71 | $0.77 | +8.5% | $3.0B | +19.0% |
| Jul 21, 2022 | $0.56 | $0.75 | +33.9% | $2.6B | +9.9% |
Source: company filings + earnings calendar. For informational purposes only — not investment advice.
Earnings call summary
Q1 FY2026 · April 21, 2026
AI summary of management’s prepared remarks and analyst Q&A. For informational purposes only — not investment advice.
Management highlights
- Cyclical industry driven by greed and fear; fear fading, greed percolating. - Standard market carriers broadening appetite, competition in property reinsurance, casualty market competitive. - Insurance segments: Mixed bag, some lines like GL and umbrella have rate, DNO and EPLI in CA cautious. - Workers' comp: California out in front. - Auto: Concern about loss-cost trend. - Cycle management: Decoupling of product lines and broad offering for resilience. - Rich provided financial summary: Record net investment income, strong underwriting profits, return on equity 21.2%, net income $515 million, operating income $514 million. - Rob talked about rate, renewal retention ratio, rethinking balance between rate and growth, loss ratio, expense ratio, investment portfolio quality and yield, capital development.
Guidance
- Hopeful for better growth in Q2 but can't promise. - Expect remainder of 2026 to return to normalized tax rate. - Capital management: Will continue to return large amounts of capital to shareholders in best interest of shareholders.
Segment performance
Insurance segment: Gross premiums written grew 4.5% to $3.4 billion, net premiums written grew 3.2% to $2.8 billion. Current accident year combined ratio excluding CAT losses was 88.3%, calendar year combined ratio was 90.7%. Reinsurance and monoline excess segment: Net premiums written $395 million, current accident year loss ratio XCAT increased to 51.1%. Net investment income increased 12.2% to a record $404 million. Stockholders' equity increased to approximately $9.75 billion.
Risks & headwinds
- Cyclical nature of industry. - Intense competition in property and casualty markets affecting margins. - Uncertainty in casualty reinsurance marketplace. - Potential irrational behavior in property and liability markets due to competition. - Concerns about auto market and loss-cost trend.
Analyst Q&A
Q: Elise Greenspan asked about squaring comments on market competition and growth opportunities, premium growth, etc.
A: Rob Berkley responded on pockets of opportunity, top line improvement, and growth potential in Q2.
Q: Rob Cox asked about property pricing adequacy, professional lines growth.
A: Rob Berkley responded on property reinsurance pricing, professional lines growth outside US.
Q: Alex Scott asked about reinsurance outlook, casualty reserves.
A: Rob Berkley responded on reinsurance market conditions, casualty reserves being a bigger conversation.
Q: Andrew Kligerman asked about capital management, gross vs net written premium, prior year development.
A: Rob Berkley responded on capital management, gross vs net factors, prior year development.
Q: Michael Zaremski asked about social inflationary lines, debt-to-cap.
A: Rob Berkley responded on loss trend focus, debt-to-cap circumstances.
Q: Bob Huang asked about M&A, growth areas.
A: Rob Berkley responded on M&A caution, organic growth.
Q: Tracy Ben-Gigi asked about casualty reinsurance adequacy, total return approach.
A: Rob Berkley responded on casualty reinsurance margin, not throwing underwriting discipline.
Q: Mark Hughes asked about standard carriers' appetite, loss picks.
A: Rob Berkley responded on standard carriers' activity, loss picks view.
Q: David Motemaden asked about rate let-up areas, insurance growth durability, claims payment patterns.
A: Rob Berkley responded on rate let-up detail, insurance growth broader lens, claims payment pattern adaptation.
Q: Joshua Shanker asked about reinsurance book, MGA competition, capital deployment.
A: Rob Berkley responded on reinsurance book loss, MGA competition, capital deployment.
Q: Katie Sakis asked about commercial auto exposures, Berkeley Embedded.
A: Rob Berkley responded on commercial auto growth, Berkeley Embedded progress.
Q: Andrew Anderson asked about workers' comp growth, standard carriers' business.
A: Rob Berkley responded on workers' comp opportunity, standard carriers' business.
Q: Mayor Shields asked about pricing directive, Middle East conflict exposure.
A: Rob Berkley responded on pricing decision drive, no significant Middle East exposure.
Q: Brian Meredith asked about growth related to incubator businesses.
A: Rob Berkley responded on incubator businesses' progress.