45,016 Shares of Ameriprise Financial, Inc. $AMP Acquired by ZWJ Investment Counsel Inc.

Key Points

• ZWJ Investment Counsel acquired 45,016 Ameriprise Financial shares in the third quarter, worth approximately $22.2 million and representing about 0.05% of the company. Institutional investors collectively own 83.95% of AMP.
• Analysts maintain a generally favorable view, with a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $572.55. Recent targets range from $483 to $623.
• Ameriprise reported quarterly earnings of $11.07 per share, beating estimates, and announced a $5.5 billion share-repurchase authorization covering up to 12.3% of outstanding shares, alongside a quarterly dividend of $1.70.

ZWJ Investment Counsel Inc. bought a new position in Ameriprise Financial, Inc. (NYSE:AMP - Free Report) in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund bought 45,016 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $22,164,000. ZWJ Investment Counsel Inc. owned about 0.05% of Ameriprise Financial as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. State Street Corp lifted its stake in shares of Ameriprise Financial by 1,279.7% in the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 63,365,362 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $29,069,493,000 after buying an additional 58,772,775 shares in the last quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Ameriprise Financial by 960.8% during the second quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 3,352,117 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,537,817,000 after buying an additional 3,036,128 shares during the last quarter. Artemis Investment Management LLP bought a new stake in shares of Ameriprise Financial during the third quarter valued at approximately $925,211,000. Douglas Lane & Associates LLC bought a new stake in shares of Ameriprise Financial during the third quarter valued at approximately $575,767,000. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its position in shares of Ameriprise Financial by 2.0% during the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,024,758 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $455,387,000 after acquiring an additional 19,731 shares in the last quarter. 83.95% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on AMP shares. Argus boosted their price objective on shares of Ameriprise Financial from $534.00 to $590.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, July 31st. BMO Capital Markets cut their target price on Ameriprise Financial from $560.00 to $520.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, October 6th. Evercore reduced their target price on Ameriprise Financial from $625.00 to $623.00 in a report on Friday, July 24th. Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on Ameriprise Financial from $489.00 to $483.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, October 9th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price target on Ameriprise Financial from $515.00 to $545.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a report on Friday, July 24th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have issued a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Ameriprise Financial presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $572.55.

Ameriprise Financial Stock Performance

Shares of AMP stock opened at $496.19 on Thursday. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $535.87 and a 200-day moving average price of $496.87. Ameriprise Financial, Inc. has a 52 week low of $422.37 and a 52 week high of $572.56. The firm has a market capitalization of $44.61 billion, a PE ratio of 11.97, a P/E/G ratio of 1.01 and a beta of 1.16. The company has a quick ratio of 0.71, a current ratio of 0.71 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99.

Ameriprise Financial (NYSE:AMP - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 23rd. The financial services provider reported $11.07 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $10.81 by $0.26. The firm had revenue of $4.90 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.87 billion. Ameriprise Financial had a net margin of 20.24% and a return on equity of 64.19%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 11.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $9.11 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Ameriprise Financial, Inc. will post 46.14 earnings per share for the current year.

Ameriprise Financial Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 21st. Investors of record on Monday, August 3rd were issued a $1.70 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 3rd. This represents a $6.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.4%. Ameriprise Financial's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 16.40%.

Ameriprise Financial announced that its board has approved a share repurchase plan on Tuesday, September 29th that permits the company to repurchase $5.50 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the financial services provider to reacquire up to 12.3% of its shares through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are generally a sign that the company's board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Activity at Ameriprise Financial

In other Ameriprise Financial news, insider William Williams sold 8,210 shares of Ameriprise Financial stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $539.35, for a total value of $4,428,063.50. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 6,780 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,656,793. The trade was a 54.77% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Deirdre Mcgraw sold 2,400 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $558.28, for a total transaction of $1,339,872.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 3,373 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,883,078.44. This represents a 41.57% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 29,988 shares of company stock worth $16,316,497. Company insiders own 0.60% of the company's stock.

Ameriprise Financial Profile

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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