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Ameriprise Financial, Inc. (AMP), headquartered in Minneapolis, Minnesota, operates as a financial planning and services firm. Valued at $51.7 billion by market cap, the company provides financial planning and products and services that are designed to be utilized as solutions for its clients’ cash and liquidity, asset accumulation, income, protection, and estate and wealth transfer needs under the Columbia Threadneedle Investments brand. The leading diversified financial services firm is expected to announce its fiscal second-quarter earnings for 2025 on Wednesday, Jul. 23.

Ahead of the event, analysts expect AMP to report a profit of $8.99 per share on a diluted basis, up 5.4% from $8.53 per share in the year-ago quarter. The company beat the consensus estimates in three of the last four quarters while missing the forecast on another occasion.

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For the full year, analysts expect AMP to report EPS of $36.76, up 7% from $34.35 in fiscal 2024. Its EPS is expected to rise 7.6% year over year to $39.56 in fiscal 2026.

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AMP stock has outperformed the S&P 500 Index’s ($SPX) 13.4% gains over the past 52 weeks, with shares up 25.2% during this period. However, it underperformed the Financial Select Sector SPDR Fund’s (XLF) 28% gains over the same time frame.

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On Apr. 24, AMP shares closed up marginally after reporting its Q1 results. Its adjusted EPS of $9.50 topped Wall Street expectations of $9.12. The company’s adjusted revenue was $4.3 billion, falling short of Wall Street forecasts of $4.4 billion.

Analysts’ consensus opinion on AMP stock is moderately bullish, with a “Moderate Buy” rating overall. Out of 13 analysts covering the stock, five advise a “Strong Buy” rating, two suggest a “Moderate Buy,” five give a “Hold,” and one recommends a “Strong Sell.” While AMP currently trades above its mean price target of $528.54, the Street-high price target of $605 suggests an upside potential of 11.4%.

On the date of publication, Neha Panjwani did not have (either directly or indirectly) positions in any of the securities mentioned in this article. All information and data in this article is solely for informational purposes. This article was originally published on Barchart.com

Traders work on the floor at the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in New York City, U.S., February 24, 2025. REUTERS/Brendan McDermid/File Photo Purchase Licensing Rights , opens new tab

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NEW YORK, Feb 26 (Reuters) – The S&P 500 will finish 2025 up about 9% from now, but volatility will likely increase as a barrage of tariff announcements, job cuts and policy changes from President Donald Trump fuels uncertainty, according to equity strategists in a Reuters poll.

The year-end target of 6,500 for the benchmark S&P 500 (.SPX) , opens new tab , the median forecast of 54 equity strategists, analysts, brokers and portfolio managers collected February 13-25 is unchanged from a Reuters equity poll in November.

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That is 9% above Tuesday’s close of 5,955.25.

The index is up 1.3% so far in 2025 following two straight years of gains exceeding 20%, helped largely by gains in megacap tech companies like Nvidia (NVDA.O) , opens new tab dominating the race for artificial intelligence technology.

Strategists said they expect solid corporate earnings growth to continue to support gains in equities and they see a possible boost to the economy if Trump, who took office on January 20, goes ahead with his pro-growth agenda for tax cuts and deregulation.

But they say tariffs threaten to add inflationary pressures at a time when the Federal Reserve has paused its rate-cutting cycle.

“The economy is growing, inflation has been sticky but it’s much lower than it was just six months or a year ago, and corporate profits are growing,” said Anthony Saglimbene, chief market strategist at Ameriprise Financial in Troy, Michigan, which has a 6,500 “base case” year-end forecast for the S&P 500.

“What could derail some of that are the tariffs. That, to us, is the biggest known unknown for markets and investors,” he said, noting that for now investors may be viewing the tariff announcements as “a negotiating tactic.”

Trump has rolled out a new 10% levy on all Chinese imports and announced tariffs on global steel and aluminum imports.

He said on Monday his proposed tariffs on Mexico and Canada were still set to start next week, and has said he plans to introduce 25% tariffs on autos, semiconductors and pharmaceutical imports.

More recently, worries about a slowdown have emerged. Data on Tuesday showed U.S. consumer confidence deteriorated at its sharpest pace in 3-1/2 years in February while 12-month inflation expectations jumped.

Also, thousands of U.S. government workers have been fired in recent weeks as part of Trump’s plan to reduce the federal workforce, although those losses have mostly not appeared yet in formal measures of the U.S. job market.

The cuts are being carried out under the direction of Tesla Chief Executive Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency.

Moreover, Trump has verbally supported Russia as he has pushed for a deal to end Russia’s conflict with Ukraine , and has denounced the Ukrainian president as a dictator, creating alarm among some investors about relations between the U.S. and the rest of the world.

When asked whether a stock market correction of at least 10% is likely in the coming three months, 13 of 19 poll participants who answered the question said it was likely or highly likely, while six said it was unlikely.

“Those with a short-term horizon, they could be a little rattled by volatility. We just have so many unknowns as we start 2025,” said Kristina Hooper, chief global market strategist at Invesco in New York. She expects the S&P 500 to end this year at 6,360.

Still, she said, “policies are probably going to be less important than what’s fundamentally happening”, such as with earnings.

Analysts expect S&P 500 earnings growth of 11.1% in 2025, compared with 11.7% in 2024, with growth for the final quarter of 2024 set to be the highest since 2021, according to LSEG.

Even after a choppy start to 2025, the S&P 500 is trading at a multiple of about 22 times forward earnings, compared with a 10-year average price-to-earnings ratio of about 18, based on LSEG data.

Strategists continued to cite financials (.SPSY) , opens new tab as among their top sector picks for 2025, partly because of prospects for deregulation under Trump.

The poll has the Dow Jones industrial average (.DJI) , opens new tab finishing this year at 47,024, up from 46,600 in the Reuters November poll. The index closed at 43,621.16 on Tuesday.

(Other stories from the Reuters Q1 global stock markets poll package)

Reporting by Caroline Valetkevitch; additional reporting by Chuck Mikolajczak, Stephen Culp, Sinead Carew, Noel Randewich, Chibuike Oguh and Alden Bentley; Polling by Sarupya Ganguly and Jaiganesh Mahesh; Editing by William Maclean

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We recently published a list of 10 Best Stocks to Buy and Hold for 20 Years. In this article, we are going to take a look at where Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) stands against other best stocks to buy and hold for 20 years.

As per Ameriprise Financials, the initial months of 2025 were tough for investors. This is because leading US stock indexes ended the first quarter meaningfully lower, countering the investor projections that stocks will continue to move northwards after the 2 strong years of returns. Notably, the tariff uncertainty has impacted the markets this year, while recession odds are increasing, and global trade frictions continue to increase. Since major market areas have corrected from the recent highs, and the outlook has become guarded, the investment firm believes that maintaining a balanced perspective of current conditions remains important during periods of market stress.

What Lies Ahead in Q2 2025?

Ameriprise Financial opines that Q2 2025 is expected to bring as much uncertainty and volatility for investors as Q1 2025. That being said, the investment firm believes that the bullish case for stocks is expected to prevail long term, considering the current firm US economic and profit conditions. However, the threat of Trump’s tariff policies and the possible retaliatory tariffs can change the broader market dynamics.

Nevertheless, the investors should not deviate from the well-diversified portfolio. As per Ameriprise Financial, the investors are required to focus on holding high-quality assets throughout their portfolio, make sure that their allocations are in line with their risk tolerance, and that they take a longer-term view of the current market stress, which, historically, can result in opportunities to dollar-cost average in the high-quality assets.

READ ALSO: 7 Best Stocks to Buy For Long-Term and 8 Cheap Jim Cramer Stocks to Invest In.

What Could Support Equities?

As per Ameriprise Financial, if a recession is avoided, considering the recent tariff dynamics, the current stock levels can provide attractive entry points for investors who plan to dollar-cost average in the volatility. Furthermore, the US economy and S&P 500 Index corporate profits are projected to grow, says the firm. While it remains difficult to project where the economy and corporate profits can move over the near-to-intermediate term as a result of current tariff policies, the US economy and corporate earnings are expected to remain positive in H1 2025, says Ameriprise Financial.

The corporate profit margins are at strong levels relative to history, which can support companies in navigating tariff worries and stabilize demand and profits, especially if these tariff impacts are temporary. On average, when the sentiment is significantly weak and there is increased uncertainty about policy, some clarity emerges. And with this, the stock performance tends to improve over the upcoming 6 to 12 months, says the investment management firm.

One of the largest alternative asset managers, Blackstone BX is slated to announce fourth-quarter and full-year 2024 results on Jan. 30, before the opening bell. Its quarterly revenues and earnings are likely to have increased on a year-over-year basis.

Stay up-to-date with all quarterly releases: See Zacks Earnings Calendar.

Blackstone’s third-quarter 2024 earnings beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate. Results benefited from an increase in segment revenues and higher assets under management (AUM) balance. However, a rise in expenses was an undermining factor.

Blackstone has a decent earnings surprise history. Its earnings surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate in two, met in one and lagged in one of the trailing four quarters, with the average surprise being 6.20%.

Blackstone Inc. Price and EPS Surprise

Blackstone Inc. Price and EPS Surprise

Blackstone Inc. price-eps-surprise | Blackstone Inc. Quote

Blackstone’s Q4 Earnings & Sales Estimates

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Blackstone’s earnings of $1.50 per share has been revised marginally lower over the past seven days. The figure indicates a jump of 35.1% from the prior-year quarter’s reported number.

The consensus estimate for sales is pegged at $3.82 billion, which suggests an increase of 50.8%.

Major Factors to Note & Q4 Estimates for Blackstone

Blackstone has been witnessing increases in fee-earning AUM and total AUM on the back of its diversified product and revenue mix, superior position in the alternative investments space and net inflows. Given the high market volatility and increased client activity in the fourth quarter, Blackstone is expected to have recorded a rise in the AUM balance as inflows grew. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for total AUM of $1.13 trillion indicates growth of 8.8% from the prior-year quarter. The consensus estimate for total fee-earning AUM of $842.8 billion suggests a rise of 10.5%.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for total management and advisory fees (segment revenues) is pegged at $1.87 billion, which indicates a 13% increase. The consensus estimate for fee-related performance revenues (segment revenues) of $1.2 billion suggests a whopping surge from $169 million in the prior-year quarter.

Additionally, Blackstone expects profits from deal exits to have been solid in the to-be-reported quarter. Per the company’s preliminary estimate, revenues from realization activities were more than $775 million between Oct. 1 and Dec. 23, 2024. The figure comprises 95% of realized performance revenues and 5% of realized principal investment income.

The consensus estimate for realized performance revenues and realized principal investment income is pegged at $670.8 million and $45.7 million, respectively. In the fourth quarter of 2023, Blackstone generated $693.2 million of realized performance revenues and $19.2 million of principal investment income.

Blackstone’s expenses have been elevated over the past few years mainly because of higher general, administrative and other expenses. As the company has continued to invest in franchises, expenses are expected to have risen to some extent in the fourth quarter.

Wall Street expects a year-over-year increase in earnings on higher revenues when Ameriprise Financial Services (AMP) reports results for the quarter ended March 2025. While this widely-known consensus outlook is important in gauging the company’s earnings picture, a powerful factor that could impact its near-term stock price is how the actual results compare to these estimates.

The stock might move higher if these key numbers top expectations in the upcoming earnings report, which is expected to be released on April 24. On the other hand, if they miss, the stock may move lower.

While management’s discussion of business conditions on the earnings call will mostly determine the sustainability of the immediate price change and future earnings expectations, it’s worth having a handicapping insight into the odds of a positive EPS surprise.

Zacks Consensus Estimate

This financial services company is expected to post quarterly earnings of $9.12 per share in its upcoming report, which represents a year-over-year change of +8.7%.

Revenues are expected to be $4.39 billion, up 7.1% from the year-ago quarter.

Estimate Revisions Trend

The consensus EPS estimate for the quarter has been revised 3.75% lower over the last 30 days to the current level. This is essentially a reflection of how the covering analysts have collectively reassessed their initial estimates over this period.

Investors should keep in mind that an aggregate change may not always reflect the direction of estimate revisions by each of the covering analysts.

Earnings Whisper

Estimate revisions ahead of a company’s earnings release offer clues to the business conditions for the period whose results are coming out. This insight is at the core of our proprietary surprise prediction model — the Zacks Earnings ESP (Expected Surprise Prediction).

The Zacks Earnings ESP compares the Most Accurate Estimate to the Zacks Consensus Estimate for the quarter; the Most Accurate Estimate is a more recent version of the Zacks Consensus EPS estimate. The idea here is that analysts revising their estimates right before an earnings release have the latest information, which could potentially be more accurate than what they and others contributing to the consensus had predicted earlier.

Thus, a positive or negative Earnings ESP reading theoretically indicates the likely deviation of the actual earnings from the consensus estimate. However, the model’s predictive power is significant for positive ESP readings only.

A positive Earnings ESP is a strong predictor of an earnings beat, particularly when combined with a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), 2 (Buy) or 3 (Hold). Our research shows that stocks with this combination produce a positive surprise nearly 70% of the time, and a solid Zacks Rank actually increases the predictive power of Earnings ESP.