Empowered Funds LLC Boosts Stock Holdings in Ameriprise Financial, Inc. $AMP

Empowered Funds LLC increased its stake in Ameriprise Financial, Inc. (NYSE:AMP) by 78.1% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 37,735 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 16,548 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC’s holdings in Ameriprise Financial were worth $16,769,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. lifted its stake in Ameriprise Financial by 5.7% in the fourth quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 199,258 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $98,388,000 after acquiring an additional 10,782 shares during the last quarter. KBC Group NV increased its position in shares of Ameriprise Financial by 12.2% in the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 150,606 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $73,848,000 after purchasing an additional 16,433 shares during the last quarter. National Pension Service increased its position in shares of Ameriprise Financial by 8.2% in the 4th quarter. National Pension Service now owns 165,543 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $81,172,000 after purchasing an additional 12,563 shares during the last quarter. LSV Asset Management raised its holdings in shares of Ameriprise Financial by 1.3% in the 4th quarter. LSV Asset Management now owns 272,018 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $133,381,000 after purchasing an additional 3,548 shares in the last quarter. Finally, PFA Pension Forsikringsaktieselskab acquired a new stake in shares of Ameriprise Financial in the 4th quarter valued at $72,050,000. 83.95% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Ameriprise Financial Trading Up 1.6%

Shares of Ameriprise Financial stock opened at $546.80 on Wednesday. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $479.17 and a 200-day simple moving average of $475.33. Ameriprise Financial, Inc. has a 12-month low of $422.37 and a 12-month high of $553.46. The company has a current ratio of 0.71, a quick ratio of 0.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99. The stock has a market cap of $49.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.19, a PEG ratio of 0.92 and a beta of 1.16.

Ameriprise Financial (NYSE:AMP) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 23rd. The financial services provider reported $11.07 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 firm had revenue of $4.90 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.87 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $9.11 EPS. Ameriprise Financial’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts forecast that Ameriprise Financial, Inc. will post 45.84 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ameriprise Financial Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 21st. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 3rd will be issued a dividend of $1.70 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 3rd. This represents a $6.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.2%. Ameriprise Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 16.40%.

Insider Activity

In other news, 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 transaction of $2,955,612.60. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 6,103 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,883,789.56. The trade was a 50.61% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Robert Francis Sharpe, Jr. sold 1,200 shares of Ameriprise Financial stock in a transaction on Friday, May 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $465.83, for a total transaction of $558,996.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 6,300 shares in the company, valued at $2,934,729. The trade was a 16.00% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Company insiders own 0.60% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently commented on AMP. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their target price on shares of Ameriprise Financial from $636.00 to $645.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, July 10th. Piper Sandler raised their price target on Ameriprise Financial from $471.00 to $518.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, July 13th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on Ameriprise Financial from $467.00 to $489.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Friday, July 10th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price objective on Ameriprise Financial from $515.00 to $545.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Friday, July 24th. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded Ameriprise Financial from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Friday, July 17th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have assigned a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Ameriprise Financial has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $555.33.

Ameriprise Financial Profile

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.