21,269 Shares of Ameriprise Financial, Inc. $AMP Bought by Keystone Financial Group Inc.

Key Points

• Keystone Financial Group purchased 21,269 Ameriprise Financial shares worth approximately $10.5 million in the third quarter, making AMP 5.3% of its portfolio and its seventh-largest holding. Institutional investors collectively own 83.95% of the company.
• Ameriprise reported quarterly EPS of $11.07, exceeding estimates, while revenue rose 11.6% year over year to $4.90 billion. The company also authorized a $5.5 billion share-repurchase program covering up to 12.3% of outstanding shares and maintains a $1.70 quarterly dividend.
• Insiders sold nearly 30,000 shares worth $16.3 million over the past three months. Analysts’ views remain generally positive, with a “Moderate Buy” consensus and an average price target of $572.55, although several firms recently lowered their targets.

Keystone Financial Group Inc. purchased a new stake in Ameriprise Financial, Inc. (NYSE:AMP - Free Report) during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 21,269 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $10,472,000. Ameriprise Financial accounts for about 5.3% of Keystone Financial Group Inc.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 7th largest holding.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Rexford Capital Inc. grew its stake in Ameriprise Financial by 19.5% in the 1st quarter. Rexford Capital Inc. now owns 147 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $65,000 after buying an additional 24 shares in the last quarter. North Dakota State Investment Board raised its holdings in Ameriprise Financial by 0.9% during the 2nd quarter. North Dakota State Investment Board now owns 2,716 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,246,000 after acquiring an additional 24 shares during the period. HBK Sorce Advisory LLC raised its holdings in Ameriprise Financial by 2.8% during the 2nd quarter. HBK Sorce Advisory LLC now owns 892 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $409,000 after acquiring an additional 24 shares during the period. Fulton Bank N.A. raised its holdings in Ameriprise Financial by 0.4% during the 2nd quarter. Fulton Bank N.A. now owns 6,688 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $3,068,000 after acquiring an additional 25 shares during the period. Finally, Revolve Wealth Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of Ameriprise Financial by 5.0% during the second quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC now owns 529 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $243,000 after acquiring an additional 25 shares in the last quarter. 83.95% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Deirdre Mcgraw sold 2,400 shares of Ameriprise Financial stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $558.28, for a total transaction of $1,339,872.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 3,373 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,883,078.44. This trade represents a 41.57% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CFO Walter Berman sold 11,012 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $548.95, for a total value of $6,045,037.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 5,609 shares in the company, valued at $3,079,060.55. This represents a 66.25% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last three months, insiders sold 29,988 shares of company stock worth $16,316,497. Company insiders own 0.60% of the company's stock.

Ameriprise Financial Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:AMP opened at $493.03 on Wednesday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $537.16 and a 200 day moving average of $496.54. The company has a current ratio of 0.71, a quick ratio of 0.71 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99. The stock has a market cap of $44.32 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.89, a P/E/G ratio of 1.03 and a beta of 1.16. Ameriprise Financial, Inc. has a 12 month low of $422.37 and a 12 month high of $572.56.

Ameriprise Financial (NYSE:AMP - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, July 23rd. The financial services provider reported $11.07 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $10.81 by $0.26. Ameriprise Financial had a net margin of 20.24% and a return on equity of 64.19%. The business had revenue of $4.90 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.87 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $9.11 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 11.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Ameriprise Financial, Inc. will post 46.14 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ameriprise Financial declared that its Board of Directors has approved a stock buyback program on Tuesday, September 29th that allows the company to repurchase $5.50 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the financial services provider to purchase up to 12.3% of its shares through open market purchases. Share buyback programs are often a sign that the company's board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Ameriprise Financial Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 21st. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 3rd were issued a $1.70 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 3rd. This represents a $6.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.4%. Ameriprise Financial's dividend payout ratio is presently 16.40%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on AMP shares. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on Ameriprise Financial from $489.00 to $483.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a report on Friday, October 9th. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their price objective on Ameriprise Financial from $562.00 to $524.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, October 2nd. Weiss Ratings upgraded Ameriprise Financial from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "buy (b)" rating in a research note on Thursday, September 3rd. Bank of America reissued a "buy" rating and set a $570.00 price objective (down from $616.00) on shares of Ameriprise Financial in a report on Monday, October 5th. Finally, Raymond James Financial raised their target price on Ameriprise Financial from $582.00 to $638.00 and gave the stock a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Friday, August 21st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have assigned a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Ameriprise Financial has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $572.55.

About Ameriprise Financial

Ameriprise Financial, Inc is a diversified financial services company headquartered in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The company provides financial planning, investment advice, wealth management, retirement planning and insurance solutions to individuals, families, business owners and institutional clients.

Ameriprise serves clients primarily through a network of financial advisors and offers products and services that include brokerage and advisory accounts, mutual funds and other investments, retirement accounts, annuities, life and long-term-care insurance, banking products and personalized financial planning.

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