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W. R. Berkley Corp Forms New Division to Boost Berkley Pro

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Shares of W. R. Berkley Corporation (WRB - Free Report) gained about 0.4% in the last trading session as the insurer announced the formation of Berkley Transactional as a division of Berkley Professional Liability Underwriters (Berkley Pro).

Berkley Transactional will underwrite transactional insurance products including representations and warranties insurance, tax opinion insurance and contingent liability insurance. Berkley Transactional will underwrite on behalf of those W. R. Berkley Insurance Group member insurance companies which carry A+ (Superior) rating from credit rating giant, A. M. Best.

W. R. Berkley expects the creation of this new division to position Berkley Pro better to benefit from opportunities offered by the insurance market.  Also, Berkley Pro stands to gain from the products offered by Berkley Transactional, in turn, enhancing client satisfaction.

W.R. Berkley focuses on strategic initiatives to capitalize on opportunities and in turn, ramp up its growth profile. In May 2016, the company announced the formation of a new operating unit named Berkley Insurance Asia to tap the commercial insurance markets of North Asia and Southeast Asia through offices in Hong Kong and Singapore, respectively. Last month, the insurer added a new business unit to write business in South Africa. Additionally, to serve the Colombian reinsurance market better, W. R. Berkley Corporation formed a division named Berkley International Seguros Colombia S.A. The company has also been expanding consistently, which positions it well to benefit from 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), overall growth is visible. The expected long-term earnings growth is 9%.

Zacks Rank and Stocks to Consider

W. R. Berkley carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). Some better-ranked property and casualty insurers include Allied World Assurance Company Holdings, AG (AWH - Free Report) , National Interstate Corporation (NATL - Free Report) and NMI Holdings, Inc. (NMIH - Free Report) . All these sport Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

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