Northern Trust Corp Has $36.45 Million Stock Holdings in Kemper Corporation $KMPR

Key Points

• Northern Trust Corp reduced its stake in Kemper Corporation by 1.6%, selling 9,124 shares, and now owns 0.85% of the company, valued at approximately $36.45 million.
• Analysts have recently downgraded Kemper's stock ratings, with JMP Securities lowering the price target from $85.00 to $75.00, and Piper Sandler issuing a target of $50.00, down from $75.00.
• Kemper announced a quarterly dividend of $0.32 per share, representing an annualized yield of 2.4%, and authorized a $500 million stock buyback program, indicating management's belief that the stock is undervalued.

Northern Trust Corp reduced its holdings in shares of Kemper Corporation (NYSE:KMPR - Free Report) by 1.6% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 545,313 shares of the insurance provider's stock after selling 9,124 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp owned approximately 0.85% of Kemper worth $36,454,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC purchased a new position in shares of Kemper during the 4th quarter worth approximately $234,000. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Kemper by 69.2% during the 4th quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 916,195 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $60,661,000 after purchasing an additional 374,798 shares during the period. Schonfeld Strategic Advisors LLC increased its position in Kemper by 3.2% in the 4th quarter. Schonfeld Strategic Advisors LLC now owns 30,155 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $2,003,000 after acquiring an additional 937 shares in the last quarter. Comerica Bank lifted its holdings in shares of Kemper by 7.1% during the 4th quarter. Comerica Bank now owns 114,543 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $7,610,000 after purchasing an additional 7,568 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV bought a new position in shares of Kemper in the fourth quarter valued at $255,000. 86.23% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Kemper Stock Down 1.2%

Shares of KMPR traded down $0.66 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $53.71. 271,751 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 576,246. Kemper Corporation has a 52 week low of $45.02 and a 52 week high of $73.01. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a current ratio of 0.21 and a quick ratio of 0.21. The company has a market cap of $3.37 billion, a PE ratio of 10.12 and a beta of 1.30. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $58.30 and a 200 day simple moving average of $61.51.

Kemper (NYSE:KMPR - Get Free Report) last issued its 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). Kemper had a return on equity of 14.39% and a net margin of 7.18%.The business had revenue of $1.23 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.23 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.42 EPS. The firm's revenue was up 8.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts forecast that Kemper Corporation will post 6.03 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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

Kemper Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 2nd. Investors of record on Monday, August 18th were given a dividend of $0.32 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 18th. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.4%. Kemper's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 24.11%.

Insider Transactions at Kemper

In other Kemper news, Director Gerald Laderman acquired 3,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 7th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $49.37 per share, for a total transaction of $148,110.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 24,635 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,216,229.95. This represents a 13.87% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Jason N. Gorevic bought 2,000 shares of the 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 directly owned 22,072 shares in the company, valued at $1,084,618.08. This trade represents a 9.96% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders purchased 8,000 shares of company stock worth $432,845 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.76% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

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

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.