Yakira Capital Management Inc. Makes New $3.23 Million Investment in Brighthouse Financial, Inc. $BHF

Yakira Capital Management Inc. bought a new position in Brighthouse Financial, Inc. (NASDAQ:BHF) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm bought 49,769 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,225,000.

Several other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Brighthouse Financial by 15.2% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC now owns 9,278 shares of the company’s stock worth $601,000 after purchasing an additional 1,222 shares in the last quarter. Verition Fund Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Brighthouse Financial by 275.5% in the fourth quarter. Verition Fund Management LLC now owns 266,500 shares of the company’s stock worth $17,267,000 after purchasing an additional 195,519 shares in the last quarter. Panagora Asset Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Brighthouse Financial in the fourth quarter worth about $242,000. Garrison Point Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Brighthouse Financial in the fourth quarter worth about $224,000. Finally, Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund purchased a new position in shares of Brighthouse Financial in the fourth quarter worth about $25,320,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.24% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on BHF shares. Argus upgraded shares of Brighthouse Financial to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 26th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reiterated a “hold” rating and issued a $67.00 target price on shares of Brighthouse Financial in a research note on Thursday, March 26th. Zacks Research raised shares of Brighthouse Financial from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, May 18th. Finally, Weiss Ratings cut shares of Brighthouse Financial from a “hold (c)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a research note on Monday, May 11th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Reduce” and a consensus target price of $60.86.

Brighthouse Financial Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:BHF opened at $63.03 on Monday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $61.96 and a 200 day moving average of $62.81. The stock has a market cap of $3.62 billion, a P/E ratio of -21.15 and a beta of 0.86. Brighthouse Financial, Inc. has a 12 month low of $42.07 and a 12 month high of $66.33. The company has a current ratio of 0.91, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56.

Brighthouse Financial (NASDAQ:BHF) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The company reported $4.35 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.57 by ($0.22). Brighthouse Financial had a negative net margin of 1.10% and a positive return on equity of 16.88%. The company had revenue of $2.10 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.20 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $4.17 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 29.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Brighthouse Financial, Inc. will post 19.73 EPS for the current fiscal year.

About Brighthouse Financial

Brighthouse Financial, Inc is a U.S.-based life insurance company that specializes in retirement income solutions and annuity products. The firm was established in August 2017 as a spin-off from MetLife, Inc, and is headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina. Since its separation, Brighthouse Financial has focused on providing products designed to help individuals and families manage retirement income needs, drawing on decades of experience in life insurance and annuity administration inherited from its parent company.

The company’s core product offerings include fixed indexed annuities, which allow policyholders to participate in market-linked gains while protecting against downside market risk, and single premium immediate annuities, which provide guaranteed lifetime income.