Sivia Capital Partners LLC Acquires Shares of 512 Ameriprise Financial, Inc. (NYSE:AMP)

Sivia Capital Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Ameriprise Financial, Inc. (NYSE:AMP) during the first quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund bought 512 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $248,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. TCTC Holdings LLC purchased a new position in Ameriprise Financial during the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. University of Texas Texas AM Investment Management Co. acquired a new stake in shares of Ameriprise Financial in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Ameriprise Financial during the fourth quarter worth approximately $28,000. Rialto Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Ameriprise Financial during the fourth quarter worth approximately $28,000. Finally, Wingate Wealth Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Ameriprise Financial in the 4th quarter valued at $30,000. 83.95% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Ameriprise Financial Trading Up 2.1%

NYSE AMP opened at $518.95 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.59, a current ratio of 0.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.01. The stock has a market capitalization of $49.42 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.70, a P/E/G ratio of 1.15 and a beta of 1.24. Ameriprise Financial, Inc. has a 52-week low of $385.74 and a 52-week high of $582.05. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $485.10 and a 200 day moving average price of $516.13.

Ameriprise Financial (NYSE:AMP) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The financial services provider reported $9.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $9.08 by $0.42. Ameriprise Financial had a return on equity of 69.35% and a net margin of 19.70%. The business had revenue of $4.35 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.45 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $8.39 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.6% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts expect that Ameriprise Financial, Inc. will post 38.64 EPS for the current year.

Ameriprise Financial announced that its Board of Directors has approved a stock repurchase program on Thursday, April 24th that authorizes the company to buyback $4.50 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the financial services provider to purchase up to 9.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are generally a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Ameriprise Financial Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, May 19th. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 5th were issued a $1.60 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 5th. This represents a $6.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.23%. This is an increase from Ameriprise Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.48. Ameriprise Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 21.75%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have issued reports on AMP shares. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on shares of Ameriprise Financial from $507.00 to $542.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 4th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price target on Ameriprise Financial from $550.00 to $565.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 29th. Wall Street Zen raised Ameriprise Financial from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, May 30th. Raymond James upgraded Ameriprise Financial from a “market perform” rating to a “strong-buy” rating and set a $518.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 7th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their target price on Ameriprise Financial from $510.00 to $520.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 7th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating, two have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $517.13.

About Ameriprise Financial

Ameriprise Financial, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, provides various financial products and services to individual and institutional clients in the United States and internationally. It operates through four segments: Advice & Wealth Management, Asset Management, Retirement & Protection Solutions, and Corporate & Other.