Ameriprise shares jump 4 percent after earnings beat expectations

Ameriprise Financial Inc. shares rose 4.2 percent Thursday, a day after it reported fourth-quarter results that beat expectations.

The company's net profit rose 12 percent in the last three months of the year, though its operating earnings were flat and its assets-management business was pressured by cost-conscious investors in the U.S. and the effects of Brexit in the U.K.

The Minneapolis-based investment-management firm said it earned $400 million in the last three months of 2016, up from $357 million a year earlier.

With operating earnings flat at $443 million, much of the gain came from improvements in the market impact of hedging on investments. Operating earnings amounted to $2.73 a share, well above the consensus forecast by analysts of $2.42.

That helped lift Ameriprise's share price on Thursday. It closed up $4.82 to $117.90, a dollar below the 52-week high it reached in December.

Revenue was $3.1 billion, down 1 percent from a year ago.

The company's advice and wealth-management business and its insurance business experienced sizable jumps in operating earnings. But they were offset by lower profits in its asset-management business and annuities unit, and an operating loss in its corporate segment.

Ameriprise said the level of that activity among its clients was "consistent with industry outflows."

The company also said outflows were affected by "lower retail activity among U.K. and European investors post the Brexit vote." British voters in June approved a referendum to exit the European Union, a move that has affected economic and investment perceptions since.

In its advice and wealth- management business, Ameriprise added more customers to actively managed accounts run by its nearly 10,000 advisers. Assets under management in so-called "wrap" accounts grew to $201 billion, up 11 percent for the year.

The company reported its results after the market closed. Ameriprise shares finished the day up nearly 1 percent.