Ameriprise Financial, Inc. (NYSE:AMP) Sees Large Drop in Short Interest

Ameriprise Financial, Inc. (NYSE:AMP) was the target of a significant drop in short interest in June. As of June 15th, there was short interest totalling 830,600 shares, a drop of 9.7% from the May 31st total of 919,800 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 459,800 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 1.8 days. Approximately 0.8% of the company’s stock are sold short.

Ameriprise Financial Stock Performance

AMP traded up $0.13 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $434.00. The stock had a trading volume of 182,807 shares, compared to its average volume of 478,530. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13, a current ratio of 0.56 and a quick ratio of 0.56. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $429.29 and a 200-day moving average price of $411.59. Ameriprise Financial has a one year low of $306.63 and a one year high of $446.32. The firm has a market cap of $43.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.70, a P/E/G ratio of 0.73 and a beta of 1.37.

Ameriprise Financial (NYSE:AMP) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The financial services provider reported $8.39 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $8.10 by $0.29. Ameriprise Financial had a net margin of 19.42% and a return on equity of 75.97%. The company had revenue of $4.15 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.15 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $7.25 earnings per share. Ameriprise Financial’s quarterly revenue was up 10.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts predict that Ameriprise Financial will post 34.92 EPS for the current year.

Ameriprise Financial Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 6th were given a $1.48 dividend. This represents a $5.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.36%. This is an increase from Ameriprise Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.35. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 3rd. Ameriprise Financial’s payout ratio is presently 20.15%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Robert Francis Sharpe, Jr. sold 1,500 shares of Ameriprise Financial stock in a transaction that occurred 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 directly owns 11,000 shares in the company, valued at $4,818,770. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 0.96% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ameriprise Financial

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Retirement Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Ameriprise Financial during the 1st quarter worth $25,000. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Ameriprise Financial during the first quarter worth about $28,000. Sound Income Strategies LLC bought a new position in Ameriprise Financial in the 1st quarter valued at about $32,000. Annapolis Financial Services LLC raised its position in shares of Ameriprise Financial by 928.6% in the 1st quarter. Annapolis Financial Services LLC now owns 72 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 65 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Ameriprise Financial during the 4th quarter worth approximately $34,000. 83.95% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Raymond James initiated coverage on Ameriprise Financial in a research note on Thursday, March 21st. They set a “market perform” rating on the stock. Argus lifted their price objective on shares of Ameriprise Financial from $440.00 to $460.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, May 6th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on shares of Ameriprise Financial from $420.00 to $460.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price target on Ameriprise Financial from $500.00 to $504.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, June 28th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada raised their price objective on Ameriprise Financial from $470.00 to $480.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 24th. One equities research 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 MarketBeat, Ameriprise Financial has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $456.22.

Ameriprise Financial Company 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.