Kemper (NYSE:KMPR) Raised to Hold at Zacks Research

Kemper (NYSE:KMPR) was upgraded by Zacks Research from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Tuesday,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other research firms have also weighed in on KMPR. Citizens Jmp lowered shares of Kemper from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report on Thursday, February 5th. UBS Group cut their target price on shares of Kemper from $56.00 to $48.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 8th. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Kemper from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 17th. William Blair lowered shares of Kemper from a “market perform” rating to an “underperform” rating in a report on Thursday, December 18th. Finally, Citigroup lowered shares of Kemper to a “market perform” rating in a report on Thursday, February 5th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have assigned a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and an average price target of $54.50.

Kemper Trading Up 1.1%

KMPR stock opened at $32.53 on Tuesday. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $31.38 and a 200 day moving average price of $38.25. Kemper has a fifty-two week low of $28.41 and a fifty-two week high of $66.13. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a quick ratio of 0.18 and a current ratio of 0.18. The firm has a market cap of $1.91 billion, a PE ratio of 14.85 and a beta of 1.14.

Kemper (NYSE:KMPR) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 4th. The insurance provider reported $0.25 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.85 by ($0.60). Kemper had a net margin of 2.99% and a return on equity of 8.02%. The business had revenue of $1.13 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.22 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.78 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 4.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Kemper will post 6.03 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of Kemper

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in KMPR. Huntington National Bank lifted its position in shares of Kemper by 187.1% during the fourth quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 646 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 421 shares during the last quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. lifted its position in shares of Kemper by 1,098.0% during the third quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 587 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 538 shares during the last quarter. Signaturefd LLC bought a new stake in shares of Kemper during the fourth quarter worth $32,000. Jones Financial Companies Lllp lifted its position in shares of Kemper by 73.5% during the third quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 656 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 278 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Kemper during the third quarter worth $36,000. 86.23% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Kemper Company Profile

Kemper Corporation (NYSE:KMPR) is a diversified insurance holding company headquartered in Chicago, Illinois. Formed through the rebranding of Unitrin in 2010, Kemper has established a nationwide presence by offering a broad array of property and casualty insurance products. The company distributes its products through independent agents, brokers and direct-to-consumer channels, serving both individual policyholders and commercial clients.

The personal insurance segment provides coverage for automobiles, homeowners, renters and umbrella lines, while the commercial business focuses on liability, workers’ compensation and specialty property solutions tailored to small and mid-sized enterprises.