Bellwether Advisors LLC Sells 4,464 Shares of Ameriprise Financial, Inc. $AMP

Key Points

• Bellwether Advisors LLC cut its Ameriprise Financial stake by 86.5% in the fourth quarter, selling 4,464 shares and ending with 699 shares worth about $343,000. Other institutional investors also made small moves, while institutions still own 83.95% of the company.
• Ameriprise insiders have also been selling shares: Director Robert Francis Sharpe, Jr. sold 1,200 shares and EVP Gerard P. Smyth sold 6,255 shares in May. Company insiders now own just 0.60% of the stock.
• The company beat quarterly earnings expectations with EPS of $11.26 versus the $10.21 estimate, though revenue came in slightly below forecast. Ameriprise also raised its quarterly dividend to $1.70 per share, and analysts currently rate the stock a consensus Hold with an average target price of $543.22.

Bellwether Advisors LLC decreased its holdings in shares of Ameriprise Financial, Inc. (NYSE:AMP - Free Report) by 86.5% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 699 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 4,464 shares during the period. Bellwether Advisors LLC's holdings in Ameriprise Financial were worth $343,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in AMP. Holos Integrated Wealth LLC bought a new stake in shares of Ameriprise Financial in the 4th quarter valued at $30,000. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Ameriprise Financial in the 3rd quarter valued at $32,000. Ares Financial Consulting LLC bought a new stake in shares of Ameriprise Financial in the 4th quarter valued at $32,000. WFA of San Diego LLC bought a new stake in shares of Ameriprise Financial in the 2nd quarter valued at $36,000. Finally, Activest Wealth Management increased its position in shares of Ameriprise Financial by 777.8% in the 4th quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 79 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $39,000 after buying an additional 70 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 83.95% of the company's stock.

Insider Transactions at Ameriprise Financial

In related news, Director Robert Francis Sharpe, Jr. sold 1,200 shares of Ameriprise Financial stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $465.83, for a total transaction of $558,996.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 6,300 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,934,729. This trade represents a 16.00% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Gerard P. Smyth sold 6,255 shares of Ameriprise Financial stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $472.52, for a total value of $2,955,612.60. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 6,103 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,883,789.56. The trade was a 50.61% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Company insiders own 0.60% of the company's stock.

Ameriprise Financial Trading Up 0.8%

Ameriprise Financial stock opened at $455.91 on Wednesday. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $454.90 and a 200-day moving average of $473.40. Ameriprise Financial, Inc. has a one year low of $422.37 and a one year high of $550.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.90, a current ratio of 0.66 and a quick ratio of 0.66. The company has a market cap of $40.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.34, a P/E/G ratio of 1.07 and a beta of 1.20.

Ameriprise Financial (NYSE:AMP - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, April 23rd. The financial services provider reported $11.26 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $10.21 by $1.05. Ameriprise Financial had a net margin of 20.57% and a return on equity of 62.88%. The business had revenue of $4.77 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.82 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $9.50 EPS. Ameriprise Financial's revenue was up 9.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts expect that Ameriprise Financial, Inc. will post 42.63 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ameriprise Financial Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 22nd. Investors of record on Monday, May 4th were issued a dividend of $1.70 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 4th. This is an increase from Ameriprise Financial's previous quarterly dividend of $1.60. This represents a $6.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.5%. Ameriprise Financial's dividend payout ratio is 16.91%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently commented on AMP shares. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price objective on shares of Ameriprise Financial from $600.00 to $620.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, February 2nd. BMO Capital Markets upped their price objective on shares of Ameriprise Financial from $470.00 to $490.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research report on Friday, April 24th. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on shares of Ameriprise Financial from $452.00 to $467.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Raymond James Financial set a $582.00 price objective on shares of Ameriprise Financial and gave the company a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 11th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods assumed coverage on shares of Ameriprise Financial in a research report on Friday, April 10th. They issued a "hold" rating for the company. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have given a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $543.22.

About Ameriprise Financial

Ameriprise Financial, Inc is a diversified financial services company headquartered in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The firm provides a range of advice-based wealth management, asset management and insurance products to individual and institutional clients. Its business model centers on delivering financial planning and investment advice through a network of financial advisors alongside proprietary product offerings designed to meet retirement, protection and accumulation needs.

Core products and services include comprehensive financial planning and advisory services, managed investment portfolios, retirement planning solutions, annuities and life insurance products.

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