Ameriprise Earnings Fall Amid Volatile Equity Markets

   By Josh Beckerman 
 

Ameriprise Financial Inc. said its third-quarter earnings fell 5.5% as equity-market volatility hurt results.

The financial-services company said it had "a solid third quarter given the backdrop of declining and volatile equity markets, unfavorable foreign exchange and persistently low interest rates."

Operating revenue fell 1%.

Ameriprise reported a profit of $397 million, or $2.17 a share, compared with $420 million, or $2.17 a share, a year earlier.

Per-share operating earnings, which exclude realized gains and losses, market effects on variable annuity benefits and other items, rose to $2.35 from $2.10.

Total revenue fell 7% to $2.89 billion.

Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters expected per-share operating profit of $2.33 and revenue of $3.06 billion.

The company said advice-and-wealth-management client assets edged down to $433 billion from $434 billion, as lower equity markets were partly offset by strength in fee-based investment advisory net inflows. Total assets under management and administration were $766 billion.

Ameriprise said total advisers increased to 9,814, reflecting strong retention and ongoing recruiting. The purchase of the retail assets of JHS Capital Advisors, announced in April, added 53 advisers and $1 billion of client assets.

In after-hours trading, Ameriprise shares were down 1% at $110.50.

Ameriprise was spun off from American Express Co. in 2005.

On Oct. 1, rating firm A.M. Best noted that factors like low interest rates could cause earnings volatility at Ameriprise, but said the company had a strong market position and high retention rates for experienced advisers.

Write to Josh Beckerman at [e-mail]

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(END) Dow Jones Newswires

October 21, 2015 19:47 ET (23:47 GMT)

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