Stockholders’ Equity

3 Months Ended

Mar. 31, 2020

Stockholders' Equity Note [Abstract]

Stockholders' Equity

Stockholders’ Equity

Common Stock Repurchase

During the three months ended March 31, 2020, Kemper repurchased and retired 1.5 million shares of its common stock in open market transactions under its share repurchase authorization for an aggregate cost of $101.2 million and average cost per share of $67.98. Of the total shares repurchased, approximately 925,000 were repurchased under a trading plan that was executed by Kemper under Rule 10b5-1 under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, and that was in effect through April 1, 2020.

Employee Stock Purchase Plan

During the second quarter of 2019, Kemper’s stockholders approved the adoption of the Kemper Employee Stock Purchase Plan (“ESPP”) and the reservation of 1,300,000 shares of Kemper’s common stock for issuance under the ESPP. The purpose of the ESPP is to provide eligible employees of the Company with the opportunity to purchase shares of common stock at a discounted price through payroll deductions with the goal of enhancing employees’ sense of participation in the Company and further align employee interests with those of Kemper’s shareholders.

Note 9 - Stockholders’ Equity

Under the ESPP, eligible employees may purchase shares of Kemper common stock through payroll deductions of between 1% and 10% of after-tax compensation each pay period, with a maximum participation of $25,000 annually. The shares are purchased at the end of each three-month offering period at a 15% discount from the closing market price as reported on the New York Stock Exchange on the last trading day of the offering period. The Company issued 13,214 shares under the plan on March 31, 2020 at a discounted price of $63.21 per share. Compensation costs charged against income were $0.1 million for the three months ended March 31, 2020.