Brighthouse Financial (NASDAQ:BHF) Given New $52.00 Price Target at Piper Sandler

Brighthouse Financial (NASDAQ:BHF) had its target price reduced by Piper Sandler from $55.00 to $52.00 in a research note released on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. They currently have a neutral rating on the stock.

A number of other equities analysts have also recently weighed in on BHF. Barclays upped their price target on Brighthouse Financial from $48.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of Brighthouse Financial from $40.00 to $41.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Brighthouse Financial currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $51.75.

Brighthouse Financial Price Performance

Brighthouse Financial stock opened at $46.65 on Wednesday. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $49.65 and a 200-day moving average of $46.26. Brighthouse Financial has a 52-week low of $40.00 and a 52-week high of $54.73. The company has a quick ratio of 0.92, a current ratio of 0.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.77 billion, a P/E ratio of -2.29 and a beta of 1.06.

Brighthouse Financial (NASDAQ:BHF) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The company reported $3.99 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.50 by ($0.51). The company had revenue of $2.02 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.21 billion. Brighthouse Financial had a negative net margin of 24.40% and a positive return on equity of 23.54%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $4.18 earnings per share. As a group, analysts predict that Brighthouse Financial will post 18.47 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Myles Lambert sold 8,400 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $51.70, for a total value of $434,280.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 33,407 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,727,141.90. The trade was a 20.09 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, EVP John Rosenthal sold 4,265 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, October 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $46.04, for a total value of $196,360.60. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 86,262 shares in the company, valued at $3,971,502.48. The trade was a 4.71 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 1.40% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Brighthouse Financial

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in BHF. UMB Bank n.a. lifted its position in shares of Brighthouse Financial by 974.1% in the 3rd quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 623 shares of the company’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 565 shares during the last quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in Brighthouse Financial by 989.5% during the third quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 621 shares of the company’s stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 564 shares during the period. CWM LLC lifted its holdings in Brighthouse Financial by 29.4% in the third quarter. CWM LLC now owns 1,491 shares of the company’s stock worth $67,000 after acquiring an additional 339 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its stake in Brighthouse Financial by 97.8% in the third quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,729 shares of the company’s stock valued at $78,000 after acquiring an additional 855 shares during the period. Finally, Quarry LP acquired a new position in Brighthouse Financial in the second quarter valued at approximately $89,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.