Verity & Verity LLC Has $12.86 Million Holdings in Ameriprise Financial, Inc. (NYSE:AMP)

Verity & Verity LLC grew its position in shares of Ameriprise Financial, Inc. (NYSE:AMP) by 2.8% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 24,159 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 663 shares during the period. Verity & Verity LLC’s holdings in Ameriprise Financial were worth $12,863,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Oakworth Capital Inc. acquired a new stake in Ameriprise Financial in the 3rd quarter valued at $31,000. Country Trust Bank lifted its stake in shares of Ameriprise Financial by 213.6% in the third quarter. Country Trust Bank now owns 69 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 47 shares in the last quarter. Peterson Financial Group Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Ameriprise Financial during the third quarter valued at about $45,000. Friedenthal Financial bought a new stake in shares of Ameriprise Financial during the fourth quarter worth about $58,000. Finally, Trifecta Capital Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Ameriprise Financial by 31.4% in the 3rd quarter. Trifecta Capital Advisors LLC now owns 138 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $65,000 after acquiring an additional 33 shares during the last quarter. 83.95% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their price target on Ameriprise Financial from $565.00 to $560.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 10th. The Goldman Sachs Group cut Ameriprise Financial from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and cut their target price for the company from $485.00 to $476.00 in a research report on Thursday, September 26th. UBS Group lowered Ameriprise Financial from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their price target for the company from $580.00 to $570.00 in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price objective on Ameriprise Financial from $535.00 to $550.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their target price on shares of Ameriprise Financial from $440.00 to $502.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Ameriprise Financial currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $494.89.

Insider Activity at Ameriprise Financial

In other news, insider Joseph Edward Sweeney sold 10,735 shares of Ameriprise Financial stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $549.68, for a total value of $5,900,814.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 5,811 shares in the company, valued at $3,194,190.48. This trade represents a 64.88 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Gumer Alvero sold 2,325 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $516.05, for a total transaction of $1,199,816.25. Following the sale, the insider now owns 4,669 shares in the company, valued at $2,409,437.45. The trade was a 33.24 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 21,715 shares of company stock worth $11,983,436. Insiders own 0.73% of the company’s stock.

Ameriprise Financial Stock Performance

NYSE AMP opened at $551.61 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99, a quick ratio of 0.65 and a current ratio of 0.65. The company has a market capitalization of $53.51 billion, a PE ratio of 21.18, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.78 and a beta of 1.36. Ameriprise Financial, Inc. has a 52-week low of $369.29 and a 52-week high of $577.00. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $548.42 and a 200 day simple moving average of $488.11.

Ameriprise Financial Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 15th. Investors of record on Monday, November 4th were issued a $1.48 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, November 4th. This represents a $5.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.07%. Ameriprise Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 22.73%.

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.