Westerkirk Capital Inc. Takes $1.35 Million Position in Ameriprise Financial, Inc. $AMP

Westerkirk Capital Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Ameriprise Financial, Inc. (NYSE:AMP) during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund purchased 2,528 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $1,349,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of AMP. Trust Co. of Vermont lifted its holdings in Ameriprise Financial by 0.6% during the 2nd quarter. Trust Co. of Vermont now owns 3,031 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,618,000 after buying an additional 19 shares during the period. Plancorp LLC raised its position in shares of Ameriprise Financial by 4.8% during the first quarter. Plancorp LLC now owns 441 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $213,000 after acquiring an additional 20 shares during the last quarter. Old Port Advisors lifted its stake in shares of Ameriprise Financial by 1.5% in the second quarter. Old Port Advisors now owns 1,381 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $737,000 after acquiring an additional 20 shares during the period. Linden Thomas Advisory Services LLC boosted its holdings in Ameriprise Financial by 0.5% in the second quarter. Linden Thomas Advisory Services LLC now owns 4,096 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,186,000 after acquiring an additional 20 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Argent Trust Co boosted its holdings in Ameriprise Financial by 1.3% in the first quarter. Argent Trust Co now owns 1,698 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $822,000 after acquiring an additional 21 shares during the last quarter. 83.95% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Heather J. Melloh sold 1,500 shares of Ameriprise Financial stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $512.34, for a total transaction of $768,510.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 2,562 shares in the company, valued at $1,312,615.08. This trade represents a 36.93% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Robert Francis Sharpe, Jr. sold 1,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $450.94, for a total transaction of $676,410.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 7,500 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,382,050. The trade was a 16.67% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders own 0.57% of the company’s stock.

Ameriprise Financial Stock Up 0.5%

AMP stock opened at $457.17 on Wednesday. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $470.14 and its 200 day simple moving average is $498.75. Ameriprise Financial, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $396.14 and a fifty-two week high of $582.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.88, a quick ratio of 0.68 and a current ratio of 0.68. The company has a market cap of $42.48 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.54, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.14 and a beta of 1.26.

Ameriprise Financial (NYSE:AMP) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 30th. The financial services provider reported $9.92 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $9.76 by $0.16. The firm had revenue of $4.73 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.51 billion. Ameriprise Financial had a return on equity of 64.97% and a net margin of 20.12%.The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $9.02 earnings per share. On average, research analysts expect that Ameriprise Financial, Inc. will post 38.64 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ameriprise Financial Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, November 24th. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 10th were paid a dividend of $1.60 per share. This represents a $6.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.4%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, November 10th. Ameriprise Financial’s payout ratio is 17.55%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on AMP shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their target price on shares of Ameriprise Financial from $550.00 to $530.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, November 3rd. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on Ameriprise Financial from $530.00 to $484.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, October 1st. Royal Bank Of Canada decreased their target price on Ameriprise Financial from $601.00 to $550.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, November 3rd. Argus dropped their price target on Ameriprise Financial from $568.00 to $554.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, November 13th. Finally, Evercore ISI cut their price target on Ameriprise Financial from $587.00 to $570.00 and set an “in-line” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, October 9th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have issued a Buy rating, five have given a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Ameriprise Financial presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $533.22.

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.