Phocas Financial Corp. Sells 142,954 Shares of Kemper Co. (NYSE:KMPR)

Phocas Financial Corp. trimmed its position in Kemper Co. (NYSE:KMPR) by 84.9% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 25,329 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 142,954 shares during the period. Kemper comprises approximately 1.3% of Phocas Financial Corp.’s holdings, making the stock its 17th largest holding. Phocas Financial Corp.’s holdings in Kemper were worth $1,683,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in KMPR. State Street Corp grew its holdings in shares of Kemper by 3.9% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 2,136,621 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $130,868,000 after buying an additional 79,622 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Kemper by 0.9% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,010,881 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $61,933,000 after purchasing an additional 9,412 shares during the period. Westfield Capital Management Co. LP grew its stake in Kemper by 81.1% during the third quarter. Westfield Capital Management Co. LP now owns 838,085 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $51,333,000 after buying an additional 375,324 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its stake in shares of Kemper by 5.6% in the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 543,044 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $36,080,000 after purchasing an additional 28,807 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its position in Kemper by 8.8% during the 3rd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 335,140 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $20,527,000 after buying an additional 27,173 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.23% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

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

Kemper Stock Up 1.2 %

KMPR stock opened at $65.83 on Wednesday. The company has a fifty day moving average of $65.91 and a 200-day moving average of $64.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50, a quick ratio of 0.27 and a current ratio of 0.27. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.21 billion, a PE ratio of 13.41 and a beta of 0.88. Kemper Co. has a one year low of $54.11 and a one year high of $73.01.

Kemper (NYSE:KMPR) last announced 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, analysts expect that Kemper Co. will post 6.03 EPS for the current year.

Kemper Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 4th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th will be given a $0.32 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, February 18th. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.94%. This is a boost from Kemper’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.31. Kemper’s payout ratio is currently 26.07%.

Kemper 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.