Brighthouse Financial, Inc. (NASDAQ:BHF) Given Consensus Rating of “Reduce” by Analysts

Brighthouse Financial, Inc. (NASDAQ:BHF) has received a consensus recommendation of “Reduce” from the nine ratings firms that are presently covering the company, Marketbeat.com reports. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, four have assigned a hold recommendation and one has issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 12 month price objective among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $49.44.

A number of research firms recently commented on BHF. Barclays began coverage on Brighthouse Financial in a research note on Wednesday, September 4th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $48.00 price objective on the stock. Evercore ISI cut their price objective on Brighthouse Financial from $56.00 to $52.00 and set an “in-line” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, August 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on Brighthouse Financial from $58.00 to $59.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 2nd. Piper Sandler cut their price objective on Brighthouse Financial from $50.00 to $45.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, June 28th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company downgraded Brighthouse Financial from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and lowered their target price for the stock from $51.00 to $40.00 in a report on Monday, August 12th.

Brighthouse Financial Stock Performance

Brighthouse Financial stock opened at $43.21 on Thursday. Brighthouse Financial has a 12-month low of $40.00 and a 12-month high of $56.24. The company has a quick ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $45.27 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $45.91. The stock has a market cap of $2.68 billion, a PE ratio of -2.27 and a beta of 1.06.

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

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

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Brighthouse Financial

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of BHF. Quadrant Capital Group LLC increased its stake in shares of Brighthouse Financial by 36.1% in the fourth 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. Quarry LP purchased a new position in shares of Brighthouse Financial in the second quarter worth about $89,000. EntryPoint Capital LLC purchased a new position in Brighthouse Financial during the first quarter valued at approximately $110,000. Central Pacific Bank Trust Division purchased a new position in Brighthouse Financial during the first quarter valued at approximately $169,000. Finally, EMC Capital Management grew its stake in Brighthouse Financial by 216.0% during the first quarter. EMC Capital Management now owns 3,776 shares of the company’s stock valued at $195,000 after acquiring an additional 2,581 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.24% of the company’s stock.

Brighthouse Financial Company Profile

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.