Ameriprise Shares Jump On Strong Earnings, Upgrade

BOSTON (AP) — Shares of Ameriprise Financial Inc. surged to a new year high Thursday after the financial services company posted a third-quarter profit that beat Wall Street's expectations, prompting an analyst to upgrade the stock.

The stock added $2.23, or about 6.3 percent, to $37.72 in afternoon trading. The stock earlier traded at $38.29, eclipsing a previous year-high of $37.80 set early this month.

The Minneapolis-based provider of financial planning, asset management and insurance services late Wednesday reported net income of $260 million, or $1 per share, a turnaround from a loss of $70 million, or 32 cents per share, in the year-ago quarter. The latest quarter's adjusted profit totaled $1.03, easily beating a 64-cent-per-share consensus estimate of analysts polled by Thomson Reuters.

On Thursday, Standard & Poor's Equity Research Matthew Albrecht raised his rating of the stock to "Hold" from "Sell," citing the better-than-expected profit. Albrecht also cited gains in client assets and investment income, as well as favorable expectations for Ameriprise's recently announced plans to acquire the long-term asset management business of Bank of America Corp.'s Columbia Management unit for up to $1.2 billion.