Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC Grows Stake in Ameriprise Financial, Inc. (NYSE:AMP)

Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC increased its holdings in Ameriprise Financial, Inc. (NYSE:AMP) by 23.9% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 29,529 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 5,692 shares during the period. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC’s holdings in Ameriprise Financial were worth $12,615,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Retirement Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Ameriprise Financial during the 1st quarter worth $25,000. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Ameriprise Financial in the 1st quarter worth approximately $28,000. Bank & Trust Co bought a new position in shares of Ameriprise Financial during the second quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Sound Income Strategies LLC purchased a new position in Ameriprise Financial during the first quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Finally, Annapolis Financial Services LLC raised its stake in Ameriprise Financial by 928.6% in the first quarter. Annapolis Financial Services LLC now owns 72 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 65 shares in the last quarter. 83.95% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Robert Francis Sharpe, Jr. sold 1,500 shares of Ameriprise Financial stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $438.07, for a total value of $657,105.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 11,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,818,770. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.73% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Ameriprise Financial Stock Performance

NYSE:AMP traded up $9.17 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $417.43. The company had a trading volume of 223,164 shares, compared to its average volume of 487,186. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16, a current ratio of 0.59 and a quick ratio of 0.56. Ameriprise Financial, Inc. has a 1-year low of $306.63 and a 1-year high of $449.94. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $426.06 and its 200-day moving average price is $420.58. The firm has a market cap of $41.46 billion, a PE ratio of 14.23, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.73 and a beta of 1.37.

Ameriprise Financial (NYSE:AMP) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 24th. The financial services provider reported $8.72 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $8.53 by $0.19. Ameriprise Financial had a net margin of 18.64% and a return on equity of 73.83%. The firm had revenue of $4.39 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.24 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $7.44 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 9.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts forecast that Ameriprise Financial, Inc. will post 34.77 EPS for the current year.

Ameriprise Financial Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 16th. Investors of record on Monday, August 5th will be paid a $1.48 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 5th. This represents a $5.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.42%. Ameriprise Financial’s dividend payout ratio is presently 20.15%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

AMP has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their target price on shares of Ameriprise Financial from $470.00 to $460.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, July 30th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on shares of Ameriprise Financial from $487.00 to $500.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 30th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price target on Ameriprise Financial from $500.00 to $504.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, June 28th. Argus lifted their price objective on shares of Ameriprise Financial from $440.00 to $460.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, May 6th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on Ameriprise Financial from $444.00 to $440.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, July 29th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $464.33.

Ameriprise Financial Profile

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.