Kemper Co. (NYSE:KMPR) Short Interest Down 14.2% in May

Kemper Co. (NYSE:KMPR - Get Free Report) saw a significant drop in short interest in May. As of May 15th, there was short interest totalling 1,090,000 shares, a drop of 14.2% from the April 30th total of 1,270,000 shares. Approximately 1.8% of the shares of the company are short sold. Based on an average trading volume of 511,900 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 2.1 days.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, Piper Sandler lowered their price objective on Kemper from $86.00 to $75.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, May 8th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $79.40.

Kemper Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:KMPR traded up $0.92 during trading on Friday, reaching $63.89. 323,391 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 382,768. The company has a quick ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 0.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50. Kemper has a fifty-two week low of $53.57 and a fifty-two week high of $73.01. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $61.10 and a 200-day simple moving average of $64.99. The firm has a market cap of $4.09 billion, a PE ratio of 13.01 and a beta of 1.30.

Kemper (NYSE:KMPR - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 7th. The insurance provider reported $1.65 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.48 by $0.17. Kemper had a net margin of 6.85% and a return on equity of 14.11%. The business had revenue of $1.19 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.21 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.07 earnings per share. The company's revenue was up 4.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts predict that Kemper will post 6.03 earnings per share for the current year.

Kemper Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 3rd. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 19th were given a $0.32 dividend. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.00%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 19th. Kemper's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 23.93%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Kemper

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina raised its position in Kemper by 0.6% in the fourth quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina now owns 26,630 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $1,769,000 after purchasing an additional 160 shares during the period. Arizona State Retirement System increased its position in shares of Kemper by 0.9% during the 4th quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 18,698 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $1,242,000 after purchasing an additional 161 shares during the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in Kemper by 2.2% in the 4th quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 8,985 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $597,000 after buying an additional 190 shares during the period. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA raised its holdings in Kemper by 2.6% in the 4th quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA now owns 8,232 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $547,000 after buying an additional 206 shares during the period. Finally, Federated Hermes Inc. lifted its position in Kemper by 4.8% in the first quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 5,688 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $380,000 after buying an additional 263 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.23% of the company's stock.

Kemper Company 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.