Ameriprise To Buy Back Up To Additional $2B Shares

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) -- Financial planning firm Ameriprise Financial Inc. said Wednesday that it will buy back up to an additional $2 billion of its shares through June 28, 2013.

It currently has a $1.5 billion buyback authorization and has repurchased $969 million of its shares under that program through the first quarter. The remaining amount is available through its 2012 shareholders meeting.

Ameriprise said it will fund the buybacks through existing working capital, future earnings and other customary financing methods.

In April Ameriprise said it would sell Securities America broker-dealer unit, which agreed to pay $150 million to settle a class action lawsuit alleging that it didn't do proper due diligence on millions of dollars in investments it sold that later proved worthless.

Ameriprise is based in Minneapolis.

Its shares fell 38 cents to $56.60 in morning trading Wednesday.