Brighthouse Financial (NASDAQ:BHF) Given New $55.00 Price Target at Piper Sandler

Brighthouse Financial (NASDAQ:BHF) had its price objective upped by Piper Sandler from $48.00 to $55.00 in a research note published on Friday, Benzinga reports. They currently have a neutral rating on the stock.

Several other brokerages also recently commented on BHF. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on shares of Brighthouse Financial from $51.00 to $49.00 and set an equal weight rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 16th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reiterated an underperform rating and issued a $50.00 target price on shares of Brighthouse Financial in a report on Friday, February 16th. Finally, Morgan Stanley downgraded shares of Brighthouse Financial from an equal weight rating to an underweight rating and set a $52.00 price objective on the stock. in a report on Friday, February 23rd. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and four have issued a hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of Hold and an average price target of $50.86.

Brighthouse Financial Stock Up 1.1 %

BHF stock opened at $51.30 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.80, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63. Brighthouse Financial has a 1 year low of $39.24 and a 1 year high of $56.24. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $49.03 and a 200 day simple moving average of $49.73. The firm has a market cap of $3.23 billion, a PE ratio of -2.77 and a beta of 1.16.

Brighthouse Financial (NASDAQ:BHF) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 13th. The company reported $2.92 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.83 by ($0.91). The firm had revenue of $1.40 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.13 billion. Brighthouse Financial had a positive return on equity of 20.71% and a negative net margin of 27.01%. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $3.51 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Brighthouse Financial will post 16.98 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Brighthouse Financial

In related news, EVP Vonda Huss sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $46.85, for a total value of $468,500.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 27,080 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,268,698. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In related news, CEO Eric T. Steigerwalt sold 25,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $46.96, for a total value of $1,174,000.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 390,765 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $18,350,324.40. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Vonda Huss sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $46.85, for a total transaction of $468,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 27,080 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,268,698. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 1.20% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Brighthouse Financial

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. American Century Companies Inc. boosted its position in Brighthouse Financial by 21.8% in the third quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 667,411 shares of the company’s stock valued at $32,663,000 after buying an additional 119,345 shares in the last quarter. Richard Bernstein Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Brighthouse Financial in the third quarter valued at about $2,819,000. Lazard Asset Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Brighthouse Financial by 80.5% during the third quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 315,763 shares of the company’s stock worth $15,452,000 after purchasing an additional 140,796 shares in the last quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC lifted its position in shares of Brighthouse Financial by 94.7% during the third quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 82,620 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,043,000 after purchasing an additional 40,194 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Xponance Inc. lifted its position in shares of Brighthouse Financial by 4.5% during the third quarter. Xponance Inc. now owns 9,099 shares of the company’s stock worth $445,000 after purchasing an additional 394 shares in the last quarter. 81.24% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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 offers 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.