Kemper Co. (NYSE:KMPR) Short Interest Up 6.1% in May

Kemper Co. (NYSE:KMPR) was the recipient of a significant growth in short interest in the month of May. As of May 31st, there was short interest totalling 1,220,000 shares, a growth of 6.1% from the May 15th total of 1,150,000 shares. Approximately 2.0% of the company’s shares are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 387,200 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 3.2 days.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

KMPR has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Piper Sandler increased their target price on shares of Kemper from $66.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, April 1st. JMP Securities reissued a “market outperform” rating and set a $75.00 price target on shares of Kemper in a research report on Monday, April 15th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, four have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Kemper currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $70.40.

Kemper Stock Performance

Shares of Kemper stock opened at $59.21 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.81 billion, a P/E ratio of -31.14 and a beta of 0.89. Kemper has a 52 week low of $38.32 and a 52 week high of $64.69. The company has a quick ratio of 0.21, a current ratio of 0.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $58.71 and its two-hundred day moving average is $56.52.

Kemper (NYSE:KMPR) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 1st. The insurance provider reported $1.07 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.09 by ($0.02). The company had revenue of $1.14 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.01 billion. Kemper had a negative net margin of 2.52% and a positive return on equity of 3.03%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 11.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned ($1.02) earnings per share. Research analysts forecast that Kemper will post 4.48 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Kemper Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, May 28th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 13th were given a dividend of $0.31 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 10th. This represents a $1.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.09%. Kemper’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -65.26%.

Insider Activity at Kemper

In other news, Director Gerald Laderman acquired 5,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 10th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $61.01 per share, with a total value of $305,050.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 16,700 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,018,867. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 6.20% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Kemper

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of KMPR. New York State Teachers Retirement System grew its position in Kemper by 0.3% in the 1st quarter. New York State Teachers Retirement System now owns 71,848 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $4,449,000 after buying an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. Amalgamated Bank grew its position in Kemper by 0.6% in the 4th quarter. Amalgamated Bank now owns 37,881 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $1,844,000 after buying an additional 235 shares during the last quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina grew its position in Kemper by 1.0% in the 4th quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina now owns 26,692 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $1,299,000 after buying an additional 260 shares during the last quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama grew its position in Kemper by 0.4% in the 4th quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama now owns 75,450 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $3,672,000 after buying an additional 268 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Nisa Investment Advisors LLC grew its position in Kemper by 0.6% in the 4th quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 51,145 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $2,489,000 after buying an additional 297 shares during the last quarter. 86.23% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.