Kemper Corporation
 | |
| Public | |
| Traded as | NYSE: KMPR |
| Industry | Insurance and Consumer Finance |
| Founded | 1990 |
| Headquarters |
One East Wacker Drive Chicago, Illinois, USA |
Key people | Donald G. Southwell, Chairman, President & CEO |
| Total assets | Over $8 billion (2011)[1] |
Number of employees | 7,000+ (2011) |
| Slogan | Insurance with you in mind. |
| Website | www.kemper.com |
Kemper Corporation (formerly known as Unitrin) is one of America's major insurance and consumer finance providers. The group of companies specializes in property and casualty insurance, life and health insurance products for individuals, families, and small businesses.[2]
History
Unitrin, Inc. was founded in April 1990 when it was spun off from Henry Singleton's conglomerate Teledyne. Singleton hoped that the spin-off of Unitrin would duplicate the successful results of the Argo Group, originally a worker's compensation insurance provider, spun off in 1986. Argonaut's original $20 per share stock appreciated 240 percent by 1990.
Singleton remained Chairman of Unitrin after it was spun off to shareholders at $31.25 per share, trading on NASDAQ. Unitrin divided its business into three major categories: life and health insurance; property and casualty insurance; and consumer finance, which covered a variety of services including automobile and industrial loans.
During the second part of 1994, Unitrin was targeted for a hostile takeover because of its increasing success. American General Corp., an insurance carrier headquartered in Houston, sent a $2.6 billion takeover bid. On June 26, Unitrin rejected the $50.38 per share offer and adopted a poison pill defense by initiating a stock buyback plan of ten million shares or 19% of its stock. American General then took Unitrin to court. A Delaware Chancery Court judge agreed and issued a restraining order against Unitrin's proposed stock buyback until September 27, 1994. Unitrin continued to resist the merger offer, and, on December 13, 1994, the Delaware Supreme Court overturned the lower court's injunction, allowing Unitrin to continue buying back its stock. (For details see Unitrin, Inc. v. American General Corp.) As 1994 ended, Unitrin's total revenues rose slightly to $1.37 billion, just over the previous year's $1.36 billion. However, Unitrin's net income rose from $95 million in 1993 to a shocking $148 million for 1994 fiscal year. As Unitrin entered its fifth year as an independent company, it continued buying back its stock to keep American General and, possibly, other suitors at bay. By the end of 1995, Unitrin had bought back 13.5 million shares at a cost of $661 million. Unitrin's poison pill defense worked: American General's takeover bid expired on February 7, 1995 and was not renewed.[3]
In 2002, Unitrin purchased the homeowners and automobile insurance lines of Kemper Insurance, a long-time Chicago insurance and financial services firm that had failed. [4] [5] [6]In 2010, Unitrin purchased all rights to the Kemper name, and on August 25, 2011, Unitrin officially began operations as Kemper Corporation, with trading on the New York Stock Exchange under the KMPR ticker symbol.[7]
Alliance United Insurance Company
Kemper is currently in the process of purchasing Alliance United Insurance Company, one of the fastest growing auto insurance providers in the State of California. Source:[8]
Kemper subsidiaries
Source:[9]
Property and casualty insurance
- Alpha Property & Casualty Insurance Company
- Charter County Mutual
- Charter Indemnity Company
- Financial Indemnity Company
- Kemper Independence Insurance
- Merastar Insurance Company
- Mutual Savings Fire Insurance Company
- National Merit Insurance Company
- Response Insurance Company
- Response Worldwide Direct Auto
- Response Worldwide Insurance Company
- Trinity Universal Insurance Company
- Union National Fire Insurance Company
- United Casualty Insurance Company of America
- Unitrin Advantage Insurance Company
- Unitrin Auto and Home Insurance Company
- Unitrin Casualty Insurance Company of America
- Unitrin Advantage Insurance Company
- Unitrin Auto & Home Insurance Company
- Kemper Direct
- Unitrin Direct Property & Casualty Company
- Unitrin Preferred Insurance Company
- Unitrin Safeguard Insurance Company
- Valley Property & Casualty Insurance Company
- Warner Insurance Company
Life and health insurance
- Mutual Savings Life Insurance Company
- Reserve National Insurance Company
- The Reliable Life Insurance Company
- Union National Life Insurance Company
- United Insurance Company of America
Affiliated insurance companies
- Fireside Bank
- Capitol County Mutual Fire Insurance Company
- Old Reliable Casualty Company
- Unitrin County Mutual Insurance Company
References
- ↑ "Kemper Corporation". Retrieved 2011-08-31.
- ↑ "Kemper Corporation". Retrieved 2011-08-31.
- ↑ "Funding Universe - Unitrin Inc Company History". 1997. Retrieved 2007-12-09. Funding Universe obtained this article from International Directory of Company Histories 16. St. James Press. 1997.
- ↑ "Unitrin buys rights to Kemper Insurance name". 2010. Retrieved 2016-01-10.
- ↑ "Kemper runoff saga nearing conclusion". 2010. Retrieved 2016-01-10.
- ↑ "Kemper". Retrieved 2016-01-10.
- ↑ "Unitrin Changes Name to Kemper". 2011. Retrieved 2011-08-31.
- ↑ "Kemper to Buy Alliance United in California Car Insurance Push". Retrieved 2014-12-11.
- ↑ "Kemper Corporation – Affiliated Companies". Retrieved 2011-08-31.
External links
- Kemper Corporation | Property, Casualty, Life, Health Insurance
- Rights Agent for Wachovia Bank, National Association