Critical Analysis: Kemper (NYSE:KMPR) versus International General Insurance (NASDAQ:IGIC)

Kemper (NYSE:KMPR) and International General Insurance (NASDAQ:IGIC) are both finance companies, but which is the superior business? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their institutional ownership, analyst recommendations, earnings, valuation, profitability, risk and dividends.

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares Kemper and International General Insurance”s revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Kemper	$4.84 billion	0.50	$317.80 million	$3.83	10.73
International General Insurance	$539.00 million	2.09	$135.15 million	$2.76	9.13

Kemper has higher revenue and earnings than International General Insurance. International General Insurance is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Kemper, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Profitability

This table compares Kemper and International General Insurance’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Kemper	5.13%	11.48%	2.60%
International General Insurance	23.76%	18.36%	5.82%

Dividends

Kemper pays an annual dividend of $1.28 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.1%. International General Insurance pays an annual dividend of $0.20 per share and has a dividend yield of 0.8%. Kemper pays out 33.4% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. International General Insurance pays out 7.2% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Both companies have healthy payout ratios and should be able to cover their dividend payments with earnings for the next several years. Kemper has raised its dividend for 1 consecutive years and International General Insurance has raised its dividend for 2 consecutive years.

Insider & Institutional Ownership

86.2% of Kemper shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 54.2% of International General Insurance shares are held by institutional investors. 6.2% of Kemper shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 20.1% of International General Insurance shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Volatility and Risk

Kemper has a beta of 1.15, meaning that its stock price is 15% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, International General Insurance has a beta of 0.17, meaning that its stock price is 83% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of current ratings and price targets for Kemper and International General Insurance, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Kemper	3	1	2	0	1.83
International General Insurance	0	0	3	0	3.00

Kemper currently has a consensus price target of $56.67, suggesting a potential upside of 37.83%. International General Insurance has a consensus price target of $30.00, suggesting a potential upside of 19.05%. Given Kemper’s higher possible upside, equities research analysts plainly believe Kemper is more favorable than International General Insurance.

Summary

International General Insurance beats Kemper on 9 of the 17 factors compared between the two stocks.

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. It provides preferred and specialty automobile, homeowners, renters, fire, umbrella, general liability, and various other property and casualty insurance to individuals, as well as commercial automobile insurance to businesses. The company also offers life insurance, including permanent and term insurance; and supplemental accident and health insurance products, such as Medicare supplement insurance, fixed hospital indemnity, home health care, specified disease, and accident-only plans to individuals in rural, suburban, and urban areas. It distributes its products through independent agents and brokers. The company was formerly known as Unitrin, Inc. and changed its name to Kemper Corporation in August 2011. Kemper Corporation was incorporated in 1990 and is headquartered in Chicago, Illinois.

About International General Insurance

International General Insurance Holdings Ltd. engages in the provision of specialty insurance and reinsurance solutions worldwide. The company operates through three segments: Specialty Long-tail, Specialty Short-tail, and Reinsurance. It is involved in underwriting a portfolio of specialty risks, including energy, property, construction and engineering, ports and terminals, general aviation, political violence, professional lines, financial institutions, motor, marine liability, contingency, marine, treaty, and casualty insurance and reinsurance. The company was founded in 2001 and is based in Amman, Jordan.