Foundry Partners LLC Has $6.80 Million Holdings in Kemper Co. (NYSE:KMPR)

Foundry Partners LLC raised its stake in Kemper Co. (NYSE:KMPR - Free Report) by 1,452.8% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 102,407 shares of the insurance provider's stock after acquiring an additional 95,812 shares during the quarter. Foundry Partners LLC owned approximately 0.16% of Kemper worth $6,804,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in KMPR. Boston Partners lifted its position in Kemper by 108.2% during the fourth quarter. Boston Partners now owns 1,105,859 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $73,363,000 after buying an additional 574,730 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in Kemper during the fourth quarter worth approximately $23,325,000. Prudential Financial Inc. raised its stake in Kemper by 3,378.5% during the fourth quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. now owns 220,712 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $15,724,000 after purchasing an additional 214,367 shares during the period. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Kemper in the 4th quarter valued at $14,016,000. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its stake in shares of Kemper by 102.9% during the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 201,756 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $12,358,000 after buying an additional 102,339 shares during the period. 86.23% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Kemper Stock Down 2.6 %

Shares of NYSE KMPR traded down $1.50 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $54.95. The company had a trading volume of 99,679 shares, compared to its average volume of 357,738. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $65.99 and a two-hundred day moving average of $65.71. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50, a quick ratio of 0.27 and a current ratio of 0.27. Kemper Co. has a 12-month low of $53.57 and a 12-month high of $73.01. The company has a market capitalization of $3.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.18 and a beta of 1.05.

Kemper (NYSE:KMPR - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The insurance provider reported $1.78 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.38 by $0.40. Kemper had a net margin of 6.85% and a return on equity of 14.11%. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Kemper Co. will post 6.03 EPS for the current year.

Kemper Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 4th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th were given a dividend of $0.32 per share. This is a positive change from Kemper's previous quarterly dividend of $0.31. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 18th. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.33%. Kemper's payout ratio is currently 26.07%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

KMPR has been the topic of a number of research reports. Piper Sandler raised their price objective on Kemper from $83.00 to $86.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. StockNews.com raised shares of Kemper from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Finally, Raymond James increased their price target on Kemper from $75.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, December 26th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Kemper has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $81.60.

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.