Kemper Corporation $KMPR Shares Sold by Raymond James Financial Inc.

Key Points

• Raymond James Financial Inc. has reduced its holdings in Kemper Corporation by 24.0%, selling 84,168 shares during the first quarter, leaving it with approximately 266,909 shares valued at about $17.8 million.
• Analysts have recently downgraded Kemper, with Piper Sandler cutting its price target from $75.00 to $50.00, and Zacks Research upgrading it to a "strong sell" rating.
• Kemper has instituted a $500 million stock repurchase program, indicating management's belief that its shares are undervalued, while also declaring a quarterly dividend of $0.32 per share.

Raymond James Financial Inc. reduced its stake in Kemper Corporation (NYSE:KMPR - Free Report) by 24.0% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 266,909 shares of the insurance provider's stock after selling 84,168 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. owned approximately 0.42% of Kemper worth $17,843,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. American Century Companies Inc. raised its holdings in Kemper by 14.6% in the 1st quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 15,523 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $1,038,000 after buying an additional 1,972 shares during the period. Fox Run Management L.L.C. increased its stake in Kemper by 213.1% during the first quarter. Fox Run Management L.L.C. now owns 22,599 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $1,511,000 after purchasing an additional 15,382 shares during the period. Neuberger Berman Group LLC increased its stake in Kemper by 17.1% during the first quarter. Neuberger Berman Group LLC now owns 4,193 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $280,000 after purchasing an additional 613 shares during the period. Boston Partners increased its stake in Kemper by 14.3% during the first quarter. Boston Partners now owns 1,263,961 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $83,357,000 after purchasing an additional 158,102 shares during the period. Finally, Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd purchased a new stake in Kemper during the first quarter worth about $70,000. 86.23% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Kemper Stock Up 0.6%

Shares of Kemper stock traded up $0.32 on Monday, reaching $53.69. 527,624 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,171,891. Kemper Corporation has a 1-year low of $45.02 and a 1-year high of $73.01. The company has a market cap of $3.37 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.11 and a beta of 1.30. 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 stock's 50 day moving average price is $58.73 and its 200-day moving average price is $61.65.

Kemper (NYSE:KMPR - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 5th. The insurance provider reported $1.30 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.52 by ($0.22). Kemper had a return on equity of 14.39% and a net margin of 7.18%.The company had revenue of $1.23 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.23 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.42 earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was up 8.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Kemper Corporation will post 6.03 EPS for the current year.

Kemper Dividend Announcement

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

Kemper declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback plan on Tuesday, August 5th that allows the company to repurchase $500.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the insurance provider to repurchase up to 12.8% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are typically a sign that the company's leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

KMPR has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. 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. 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. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Kemper to a "strong sell" rating in a research note on Monday, August 11th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Kemper from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 9th. Finally, Cowen reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Kemper in a research report on Thursday, August 7th. One 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 company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Kemper currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $72.75.

Insider Activity at Kemper

In other Kemper news, Director Alberto J. Paracchini purchased 500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 10th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $61.71 per share, with a total value of $30,855.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director directly owned 10,323 shares of the company's stock, valued at $637,032.33. This trade represents a 5.09% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Jason N. Gorevic purchased 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 7th. The stock was acquired at an average cost 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 of the company's stock, 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. Insiders acquired 8,000 shares of company stock valued at $432,845 over the last three months. 0.76% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.