Kemper Co. (NYSE:KMPR) Short Interest Up 6.6% in January

Kemper Co. (NYSE:KMPR) was the recipient of a large increase in short interest in January. As of January 31st, there was short interest totalling 1,130,000 shares, an increase of 6.6% from the January 15th total of 1,060,000 shares. Currently, 1.9% of the company’s stock are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 346,800 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 3.3 days.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on KMPR shares. Piper Sandler upped their target price on Kemper from $83.00 to $86.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Raymond James upped their price target on shares of Kemper from $75.00 to $82.00 and gave the company a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, December 26th. StockNews.com raised shares of Kemper from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Finally, TD Cowen increased their price target on shares of Kemper from $72.00 to $84.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 19th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Kemper has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $81.60.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Kemper

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Jane Street Group LLC grew its position in shares of Kemper by 565.8% during the third quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 41,094 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $2,517,000 after acquiring an additional 34,922 shares during the last quarter. Westfield Capital Management Co. LP grew its position in Kemper by 81.1% in the 3rd quarter. Westfield Capital Management Co. LP now owns 838,085 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $51,333,000 after purchasing an additional 375,324 shares during the last quarter. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd raised its holdings in shares of Kemper by 244.2% during the third quarter. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd now owns 18,853 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $1,155,000 after buying an additional 13,376 shares during the last quarter. Verition Fund Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Kemper by 7.0% during the third quarter. Verition Fund Management LLC now owns 108,355 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $6,637,000 after buying an additional 7,127 shares during the period. Finally, Phocas Financial Corp. grew its holdings in Kemper by 37.4% in the 3rd quarter. Phocas Financial Corp. now owns 168,283 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $10,307,000 after buying an additional 45,796 shares in the last quarter. 86.23% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Kemper Stock Performance

KMPR stock traded down $1.76 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $65.75. 297,715 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 355,013. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $66.13 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $64.66. The company has a quick ratio of 0.22, a current ratio of 0.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50. Kemper has a 52 week low of $54.11 and a 52 week high of $73.01. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.39 and a beta of 0.88.

Kemper (NYSE:KMPR) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The insurance provider reported $1.78 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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 analysts anticipate that Kemper will post 5.95 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Kemper Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 4th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 18th will be given a dividend of $0.32 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, February 18th. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.95%. This is a positive change from Kemper’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.31. Kemper’s payout ratio is currently 25.25%.

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.