Millennium Management LLC Has $38.54 Million Stock Holdings in Kemper Corporation $KMPR

Key Points

• Millennium Management LLC has reduced its stake in Kemper Corporation by 14.3%, selling 96,309 shares, which leaves it with a total of 576,462 shares valued at approximately $38.54 million.
• Recent insider transactions include Director Gerald Laderman purchasing 3,000 shares and Director Jason N. Gorevic acquiring 2,000 shares, indicating increased confidence among company officials.
• Kemper Corporation reported a quarterly earnings miss, with an EPS of $1.30, falling short of the consensus estimate of $1.52, while also announcing a $500 million stock repurchase program aimed at enhancing shareholder value.

Millennium Management LLC reduced its position in Kemper Corporation (NYSE:KMPR - Free Report) by 14.3% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 576,462 shares of the insurance provider's stock after selling 96,309 shares during the period. Millennium Management LLC owned about 0.90% of Kemper worth $38,536,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in KMPR. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV purchased a new stake in shares of Kemper during the 4th quarter worth about $255,000. Captrust Financial Advisors raised its stake in shares of Kemper by 83.5% during the 4th quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 7,121 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $473,000 after purchasing an additional 3,240 shares in the last quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers raised its stake in shares of Kemper by 14.6% during the 4th quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 4,939 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $328,000 after purchasing an additional 630 shares in the last quarter. Deutsche Bank AG raised its stake in shares of Kemper by 22.3% during the 4th quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 4,194 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $279,000 after purchasing an additional 766 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Focus Partners Wealth purchased a new stake in shares of Kemper during the 4th quarter worth about $284,000. 86.23% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Kemper Stock Performance

NYSE KMPR traded down $0.21 during trading on Friday, hitting $53.38. The company's stock had a trading volume of 691,953 shares, compared to its average volume of 730,276. The company has a quick ratio of 0.21, a current ratio of 0.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $56.68 and a 200 day moving average price of $60.88. The firm has a market cap of $3.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.05 and a beta of 1.30. Kemper Corporation has a 52 week low of $45.02 and a 52 week high of $73.01.

Kemper (NYSE:KMPR - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 5th. The insurance provider reported $1.30 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.52 by ($0.22). The business had revenue of $1.23 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.23 billion. Kemper had a return on equity of 14.39% and a net margin of 7.18%.The business's quarterly revenue was up 8.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.42 earnings per share. Equities research analysts forecast 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 was paid on Tuesday, September 2nd. Investors of record on Monday, August 18th were paid a $0.32 dividend. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.4%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 18th. Kemper's dividend payout ratio is presently 24.11%.

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on KMPR shares. Cowen reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Kemper in a research note on Thursday, August 7th. Zacks Research raised Kemper to a "strong sell" rating in a research note on Monday, August 11th. Piper Sandler reissued an "underweight" rating and set a $50.00 price objective (down previously from $75.00) on shares of Kemper in a report on Wednesday, August 6th. JMP Securities lowered their price objective on Kemper from $85.00 to $75.00 and set a "market outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, August 6th. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered Kemper from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, August 9th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have given a Buy rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $72.75.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Gerald Laderman purchased 3,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 7th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $49.37 per share, with a total value of $148,110.00. Following the purchase, the director directly owned 24,635 shares in the company, valued at $1,216,229.95. This represents a 13.87% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Jason N. Gorevic purchased 2,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 7th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $49.14 per share, for a total transaction of $98,280.00. Following the purchase, the director owned 22,072 shares in the company, valued at $1,084,618.08. This represents a 9.96% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Corporate insiders own 6.20% of the company's stock.

Kemper Profile

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.