Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV Sells 3,328 Shares of Ameriprise Financial, Inc. (NYSE:AMP)

Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV lowered its stake in shares of Ameriprise Financial, Inc. (NYSE:AMP) by 12.1% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 24,196 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 3,328 shares during the period. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV’s holdings in Ameriprise Financial were worth $12,883,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. TCTC Holdings LLC purchased a new stake in Ameriprise Financial in the 4th quarter worth $26,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Ameriprise Financial in the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Rialto Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Ameriprise Financial in the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Wingate Wealth Advisors Inc. bought a new position in Ameriprise Financial during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Finally, Sound Income Strategies LLC purchased a new position in Ameriprise Financial during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.95% of the company’s stock.

Ameriprise Financial Stock Up 2.9 %

Shares of NYSE:AMP opened at $484.28 on Friday. Ameriprise Financial, Inc. has a 1 year low of $385.74 and a 1 year high of $582.05. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $480.71 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $521.15. The firm has a market capitalization of $46.40 billion, a PE ratio of 14.65, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.15 and a beta of 1.23. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.01, a current ratio of 0.59 and a quick ratio of 0.59.

Ameriprise Financial (NYSE:AMP) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 24th. The financial services provider reported $9.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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 company had revenue of $4.35 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.45 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $8.39 EPS. Ameriprise Financial’s revenue was up 3.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts predict that Ameriprise Financial, Inc. will post 38.64 EPS for the current year.

Ameriprise Financial Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 19th. Investors of record on Monday, May 5th will be paid a $1.60 dividend. This represents a $6.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.32%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 5th. This is an increase from Ameriprise Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.48. Ameriprise Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 21.75%.

Ameriprise Financial announced that its board has authorized a share repurchase program on Thursday, April 24th that authorizes the company to buyback $4.50 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the financial services provider to reacquire up to 9.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are usually an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have recently commented on the company. Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on Ameriprise Financial from $550.00 to $565.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday. UBS Group lowered shares of Ameriprise Financial from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their price objective for the company from $580.00 to $570.00 in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Raymond James upgraded shares of Ameriprise Financial from a “market perform” rating to a “strong-buy” rating and set a $518.00 target price on the stock in a report on Monday, April 7th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their target price on shares of Ameriprise Financial from $520.00 to $510.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on Ameriprise Financial from $507.00 to $542.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 4th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating, three have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $509.67.

Insider Activity at Ameriprise Financial

In other news, Director Robert Francis Sharpe, Jr. sold 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $523.12, for a total transaction of $523,120.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 10,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,231,200. This represents a 9.09 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Joseph Edward Sweeney sold 4,636 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $539.07, for a total value of $2,499,128.52. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 7,237 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,901,249.59. This represents a 39.05 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 11,636 shares of company stock worth $6,263,989 in the last 90 days. 0.57% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.