Kemper Corporation KMPR agreed to acquire American Access Casualty Company and its related captive insurance agency, Newins Insurance Agency Holdings, LLC, and its subsidiaries for $370 million in cash. Pending approval, the transaction is expected to culminate in the first quarter of 2021. The acquisition will strengthen the acquirer’s Specialty Auto segment.About American Access Casualty CompanyHeadquartered in Downers Grove, IL, American Access Casualty Company provides specialty private passenger auto insurance in Arizona, Illinois, Indiana, Nevada and Texas. The specialty auto insurer remains focused on Hispanic and non-standard customers. The company wrote more than $370 million of direct premiums in 2019.Rationale of the TransactionThe addition of American Access Casualty Company to Kemper’s portfolio will boost the acquirer’s specialty capabilities, within the Hispanic customer base in particular. In fact, last year, Kemper acquired Infinity Property and Casualty Corporation, a leading provider of specialty auto insurance, focused on serving the Hispanic market segment.Moreover, acquisition of American Access Casualty Company will diversify and boost Kemper’s presence in attractive specialty markets where American Access Casualty Company operates, thus ramping up growth. Kemper boasts industry leading specialty auto growth. This Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) multiline insurer’s private passenger auto and commercial vehicle premiums grew at a six-year CAGR of 40%, better than the industry growth rate of 6%. Thus the acquisition is a strategic fit to accelerate growth.The acquisition is expected to be accretive to operating earnings per share and return on tangible common equity in the first year and in high single-digit in the second year. The insurer estimates tangible book value per share to return to pre-transaction levels within the first year post closure of the transaction.AM Best Jumps to Rating ActionAM Best retained the Long-Term Issuer Credit Rating (Long-Term ICR) rating of "bbb-" of Kemper and the Financial Strength Rating (FSR) of A- (Excellent) and Long-Term ICRs of "a-" of its property/casualty operating subsidiaries. The outlook of the ratings is positive.Share PriceShares of this company have gained 0.4% year to date against the industry’s decline of 9.8%. Kemper intends to pursue businesses that have niche market focus with minimal competition. The company remains committed to investing in profitable organic growth at suitable risk-adjusted returns, making strategic investment and acquisitions that boost business and meeting or exceeding its ROE targets over time. Solid fundamentals should help the stock retain the momentum. Acquisitions in the SpaceThere have been a host of acquisitions in the insurance space of late, given the significant capital available. Brown & Brown BRO announced that its subsidiary bought CoverHound and its wholly owned subsidiary, CyberPolicy. Arch Capital Group ACGL agreed to acquire Watford Holdings WTRE. Watford Holdings is considered a variable interest entity and Arch Capital believes that it is the primary beneficiary of Watford Holdings.You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.More Stock News: This Is Bigger than the iPhone!It could become the mother of all technological revolutions. Apple sold a mere 1 billion iPhones in 10 years but a new breakthrough is expected to generate more than 27 billion devices in just 3 years, creating a $1.7 trillion market.Zacks has just released a Special Report that spotlights this fast-emerging phenomenon and 6 tickers for taking advantage of it. If you don't buy now, you may kick yourself in 2021.Click here for the 6 trades >> Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report Kemper Corporation (KMPR): Free Stock Analysis Report Arch Capital Group Ltd. (ACGL): Free Stock Analysis Report Brown & Brown, Inc. (BRO): Free Stock Analysis Report Watford Holdings Ltd. (WTRE): Free Stock Analysis Report To read this article on Zacks.com click here. Zacks Investment Research