MeritValue

BERKLEY W R CORP

WRBdata completeness 75%18 fiscal years on file

Data notes: no data for concept 'totalDebt'

The thesis, from the filings

BERKLEY W R CORP earns about 26% on invested capital, but has diluted owners by 142836% over 5 years — worth asking whether the growth reaches owners. The applicable estimate puts fair value near $35.8 a share.Whether it’s worth owning at today’s price is the last question — and yours to answer, below.

i. The business — what you’d actually own
FigureFY 2021FY 2022FY 2023FY 2024FY 2025
Revenue$449.7M1$477.4M2$471.8M3$505.8M3$555.8M3
Net income$1.02B4$1.38B5$1.38B6$1.76B6$1.78B6
Operating cash flow$2.18B7$2.57B8$2.93B9$3.68B9$3.58B9
Capital expenditure—————
Free cash flow (derived)—————
Total debt—————
Cash & equivalents$1.57B10$1.45B11$1.36B12$1.97B13$2.54B13
Diluted shares279,749419,192409.9M403.2M399.9M

Superscripts are receipts. Each links to the SEC filing the number came from (full list at the bottom).

ii. Your slice — ownership made literal
If you owned
shares
Net assets behind them
$242.6
your share of equity
Profit it earned you last year
$44.5
Free cash flow it threw off
—
Debt you’d be carrying
—

10 shares is a claim on $242.6 of net worth that earned you $44.5 last year.

iii. Is this a good business?
Moat signal · return on invested capital
26% avg · 5y
FY21 23%FY22 28%FY23 24%FY24 29%FY25 26%

It earned an average 26% on invested capital over 5 years. Compare that to what it costs to fund the business.

seeing a moat in the numbers →
Management signal · capital allocation
+142836% shares · 5y

Share count is up 142836% over 5 years — owners have been diluted. Worth asking what they got for it.

reading capital allocation →

Signals, not verdicts — read from the filings above. Numbers don’t prove a moat; they show its footprint. You decide.

iv. What it’s worth — engine v0.1.0
DCF · Growth Exit 10Y
not applicable
only 0 years of FCF (need ≥3) — model not applicable
DCF · Growth Exit 5Y
not applicable
only 0 years of FCF (need ≥3) — model not applicable
Earnings Power Value
$35.8
assumptions (8)
  • riskFreeRate4.7%
  • equityRiskPremium5.0%
  • beta100.0%
  • equityWeight85.0%
  • costOfDebtSpread1.5%
  • taxRate21.0%
  • normalizedEarnings$1.38B
  • growthAssumed0.0%
Graham Number
$49.29
assumptions (1)
  • grahamMultiplier2250.0%

Different models answer different questions — which to trust when →

Sources — the receipts
  1. 10-K · period ending 2021-12-31 · accession 0000011544-24-000005 (RevenueFromContractWithCustomerIncludingAssessedTax)
  2. 10-K · period ending 2022-12-31 · accession 0000011544-25-000005 (RevenueFromContractWithCustomerIncludingAssessedTax)
  3. 10-K · period ending 2023-12-31 · accession 0000011544-26-000005 (RevenueFromContractWithCustomerIncludingAssessedTax)
  4. 10-K · period ending 2021-12-31 · accession 0000011544-24-000005 (NetIncomeLoss)
  5. 10-K · period ending 2022-12-31 · accession 0000011544-25-000005 (NetIncomeLoss)
  6. 10-K · period ending 2023-12-31 · accession 0000011544-26-000005 (NetIncomeLoss)
  7. 10-K · period ending 2021-12-31 · accession 0000011544-24-000005 (NetCashProvidedByUsedInOperatingActivities)
  8. 10-K · period ending 2022-12-31 · accession 0000011544-25-000005 (NetCashProvidedByUsedInOperatingActivities)
  9. 10-K · period ending 2023-12-31 · accession 0000011544-26-000005 (NetCashProvidedByUsedInOperatingActivities)
  10. 10-K · period ending 2021-12-31 · accession 0000011544-23-000004 (CashAndCashEquivalentsAtCarryingValue)
  11. 10-K · period ending 2022-12-31 · accession 0000011544-24-000005 (CashAndCashEquivalentsAtCarryingValue)
  12. 10-K · period ending 2023-12-31 · accession 0000011544-25-000005 (CashAndCashEquivalentsAtCarryingValue)
  13. 10-K · period ending 2024-12-31 · accession 0000011544-26-000005 (CashAndCashEquivalentsAtCarryingValue)