Mengis Capital Management Inc. Sells 7,812 Shares of Kemper Corporation $KMPR

Mengis Capital Management Inc. reduced its holdings in Kemper Corporation (NYSE:KMPR) by 47.3% during the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 8,688 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 7,812 shares during the period. Mengis Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Kemper were worth $561,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. IFP Advisors Inc increased its position in Kemper by 651.6% in the 2nd quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 699 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $45,000 after buying an additional 606 shares during the period. 111 Capital bought a new position in Kemper in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $494,000. Lecap Asset Management Ltd. bought a new position in Kemper in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $652,000. Paragon Capital Management Ltd bought a new position in Kemper in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $207,000. Finally, CX Institutional increased its position in Kemper by 50.3% in the 2nd quarter. CX Institutional now owns 861 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $56,000 after buying an additional 288 shares during the period. 86.23% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Kemper Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:KMPR opened at $49.33 on Friday. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $52.83 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $58.87. Kemper Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $45.02 and a fifty-two week high of $73.01. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.29 and a beta of 1.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a current ratio of 0.21 and a quick ratio of 0.21.

Kemper (NYSE:KMPR) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 5th. The insurance provider reported $1.30 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.52 by ($0.22). Kemper had a net margin of 7.18% and a return on equity of 14.39%. The company had revenue of $1.23 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.23 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.42 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 8.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts predict that Kemper Corporation will post 6.03 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Kemper Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 2nd. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 18th were given a $0.32 dividend. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.6%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 18th. Kemper’s dividend payout ratio is 24.11%.

Kemper declared that its board has approved a share repurchase program on Tuesday, August 5th that allows the company to repurchase $500.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the insurance provider to buy up to 12.8% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are usually an indication that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have commented on KMPR. Piper Sandler reaffirmed an “underweight” rating and issued a $50.00 price target (down from $75.00) on shares of Kemper in a research report on Wednesday, August 6th. Cowen restated a “buy” rating on shares of Kemper in a research report on Thursday, August 7th. Zacks Research upgraded Kemper from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Wall Street Zen cut Kemper from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, August 9th. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Kemper in a research report on Wednesday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have issued a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $72.75.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Jason N. Gorevic purchased 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 7th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $49.14 per share, for a total transaction of $98,280.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 22,072 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,084,618.08. The trade was a 9.96% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Gerald Laderman acquired 3,000 shares of Kemper stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 7th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $49.37 per share, for a total transaction of $148,110.00. Following the purchase, the director owned 24,635 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,216,229.95. This represents a 13.87% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Corporate insiders own 6.20% 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.