Brighthouse Financial (NASDAQ:BHF) Coverage Initiated by Analysts at Barclays

Barclays began coverage on shares of Brighthouse Financial (NASDAQ:BHF) in a research note released on Wednesday morning, Benzinga reports. The brokerage issued an equal weight rating and a $48.00 price target on the stock.

Several other equities analysts have also recently issued reports on the company. Piper Sandler lowered their price target on Brighthouse Financial from $50.00 to $45.00 and set a neutral rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, June 28th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price target on shares of Brighthouse Financial from $47.00 to $43.00 and set a market perform rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, August 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of Brighthouse Financial from $58.00 to $59.00 and gave the company an underweight rating in a report on Tuesday, July 2nd. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price objective on shares of Brighthouse Financial from $59.00 to $63.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a research note on Monday, July 29th. Finally, Evercore ISI cut their target price on shares of Brighthouse Financial from $56.00 to $52.00 and set an in-line rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, August 8th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of Hold and an average target price of $49.44.

Brighthouse Financial Stock Performance

BHF stock opened at $45.49 on Wednesday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $45.47 and a 200 day simple moving average of $46.22. The company has a market capitalization of $2.83 billion, a P/E ratio of -2.39 and a beta of 1.08. The company has a quick ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75. Brighthouse Financial has a fifty-two week low of $40.24 and a fifty-two week high of $56.24.

Brighthouse Financial (NASDAQ:BHF) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 7th. The company reported $5.57 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.36 by $1.21. Brighthouse Financial had a negative net margin of 22.03% and a positive return on equity of 26.22%. The company had revenue of $2.21 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.21 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $4.13 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts predict that Brighthouse Financial will post 18.16 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Brighthouse Financial news, EVP John Rosenthal sold 5,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $46.00, for a total transaction of $230,000.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 96,262 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,428,052. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other Brighthouse Financial news, EVP John Rosenthal sold 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $46.00, for a total transaction of $230,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 96,262 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,428,052. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Eric T. Steigerwalt sold 25,000 shares of Brighthouse Financial stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $45.67, for a total value of $1,141,750.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 321,072 shares in the company, valued at approximately $14,663,358.24. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 42,125 shares of company stock valued at $1,895,248. Company insiders own 1.40% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Brighthouse Financial

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Retirement Systems of Alabama increased its stake in shares of Brighthouse Financial by 0.3% in the first quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama now owns 80,625 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,155,000 after acquiring an additional 211 shares during the last quarter. US Bancorp DE increased its position in Brighthouse Financial by 0.6% in the 1st quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 35,695 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,840,000 after purchasing an additional 211 shares during the last quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC raised its stake in shares of Brighthouse Financial by 36.1% during the 4th quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 1,143 shares of the company’s stock worth $60,000 after purchasing an additional 303 shares in the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA lifted its holdings in shares of Brighthouse Financial by 1.6% during the 4th quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 24,187 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,280,000 after buying an additional 388 shares during the last quarter. Finally, State of Michigan Retirement System lifted its holdings in shares of Brighthouse Financial by 2.6% during the 1st quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System now owns 15,768 shares of the company’s stock valued at $813,000 after buying an additional 400 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.24% of the company’s stock.

About Brighthouse Financial

Brighthouse Financial, Inc provides annuity and life insurance products in the United States. It operates through three segments: Annuities, Life, and Run-off. The Annuities segment consists of variable, fixed, index-linked, and income annuities for contract holders' needs for protected wealth accumulation on a tax-deferred basis, wealth transfer, and income security.