Ameriprise Financial Inc. Decreases Stock Holdings in Kemper Corporation $KMPR

Key Points

• Ameriprise Financial Inc. reduced its stake in Kemper Corporation by 2.0%, now holding approximately 1.90% of the company, equating to a value of $81.14 million.
• Kemper reported a quarterly earnings miss with an EPS of $1.30, falling below the consensus estimate of $1.52, despite achieving an 8.5% year-over-year revenue increase.
• The company announced a $0.32 quarterly dividend to be paid on September 2nd, representing a annual yield of 2.4%, while also initiating a share buyback plan worth $500 million.

Ameriprise Financial Inc. reduced its position in shares of Kemper Corporation (NYSE:KMPR - Free Report) by 2.0% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,213,758 shares of the insurance provider's stock after selling 24,526 shares during the period. Ameriprise Financial Inc. owned about 1.90% of Kemper worth $81,140,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. CX Institutional purchased a new stake in shares of Kemper during the 1st quarter worth $38,000. UMB Bank n.a. raised its stake in Kemper by 104.4% during the 1st quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 650 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $43,000 after acquiring an additional 332 shares in the last quarter. CENTRAL TRUST Co acquired a new stake in Kemper during the 1st quarter worth $44,000. Bayforest Capital Ltd acquired a new stake in Kemper during the 1st quarter worth $44,000. Finally, True Wealth Design LLC raised its stake in Kemper by 197.5% during the 4th quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 717 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $48,000 after acquiring an additional 476 shares in the last quarter. 86.23% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the stock. Cowen reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Kemper in a research note on Thursday, August 7th. JMP Securities cut their price target on shares of Kemper from $85.00 to $75.00 and set a "market outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, August 6th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Kemper from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 9th. Piper Sandler reiterated an "underweight" rating and set a $50.00 price target (down from $75.00) on shares of Kemper in a research note on Wednesday, August 6th. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded shares of Kemper to a "strong sell" rating in a research note on Monday, August 11th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have issued a Buy rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $72.75.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Jason N. Gorevic acquired 2,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 7th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $49.14 per share, with a total value of $98,280.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director owned 22,072 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,084,618.08. This represents a 9.96% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Alberto J. Paracchini acquired 500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 10th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $61.71 per share, for a total transaction of $30,855.00. Following the acquisition, the director owned 10,323 shares of the company's stock, valued at $637,032.33. This represents a 5.09% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders have bought a total of 8,000 shares of company stock valued at $432,845 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 6.20% of the company's stock.

Kemper Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:KMPR traded up $0.32 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $53.69. The stock had a trading volume of 527,624 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,177,748. The company has a market capitalization of $3.37 billion, a PE ratio of 10.11 and a beta of 1.27. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $58.73 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $61.73. The company has a current ratio of 0.21, a quick ratio of 0.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. Kemper Corporation has a 1 year low of $45.02 and a 1 year high of $73.01.

Kemper (NYSE:KMPR - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, August 5th. The insurance provider reported $1.30 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.52 by ($0.22). The firm had revenue of $1.23 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.23 billion. Kemper had a net margin of 7.18% and a return on equity of 14.39%. The firm's revenue was up 8.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.42 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that Kemper Corporation will post 6.03 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Kemper Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 2nd. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 18th will be issued a $0.32 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 18th. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.4%. Kemper's payout ratio is presently 24.11%.

Kemper announced that its board has approved a share repurchase program on Tuesday, August 5th that authorizes the company to buyback $500.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the insurance provider to reacquire up to 12.8% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are typically an indication that the company's management believes its shares are undervalued.

About Kemper

Kemper Corporation, a diversified insurance holding company, engages in the provision of insurance products to individuals and businesses in the United States. The company operates through three segments: Specialty Property & Casualty Insurance, Preferred Property & Casualty Insurance, and Life & Health Insurance.