Brighthouse Financial (NASDAQ:BHF) Hits New 1-Year High After Analyst Upgrade

Brighthouse Financial, Inc. (NASDAQ:BHF)’s stock price hit a new 52-week high during trading on Wednesday after Wells Fargo & Company upgraded the stock from an underweight rating to an equal weight rating. Wells Fargo & Company now has a $59.00 price target on the stock, up from their previous price target of $41.00. Brighthouse Financial traded as high as $64.12 and last traded at $63.32, with a volume of 49864 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $62.81.

Other analysts also recently issued research reports about the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price target on shares of Brighthouse Financial from $60.00 to $66.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Tuesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on Brighthouse Financial from $59.00 to $56.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Piper Sandler raised their price target on Brighthouse Financial from $52.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Barclays upgraded Brighthouse Financial from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their price objective for the company from $52.00 to $85.00 in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group cut Brighthouse Financial from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $64.00 price objective for the company. in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $61.75.

Insider Activity at Brighthouse Financial

In related news, EVP Myles Lambert sold 8,400 shares of Brighthouse Financial stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $51.70, for a total value of $434,280.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 33,407 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,727,141.90. This trade represents a 20.09 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP John Rosenthal sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $61.00, for a total value of $610,000.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 66,262 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,041,982. This represents a 13.11 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 1.40% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Brighthouse Financial

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Xponance Inc. lifted its position in Brighthouse Financial by 2.7% during the fourth quarter. Xponance Inc. now owns 6,860 shares of the company’s stock valued at $330,000 after buying an additional 181 shares in the last quarter. Pinnacle Holdings LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Brighthouse Financial by 0.4% during the 4th quarter. Pinnacle Holdings LLC now owns 46,297 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,224,000 after acquiring an additional 191 shares in the last quarter. Amalgamated Bank boosted its position in Brighthouse Financial by 0.8% during the 4th quarter. Amalgamated Bank now owns 28,345 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,362,000 after purchasing an additional 227 shares during the period. Mariner LLC increased its holdings in Brighthouse Financial by 4.2% in the 4th quarter. Mariner LLC now owns 6,055 shares of the company’s stock valued at $291,000 after purchasing an additional 242 shares in the last quarter. Finally, US Bancorp DE raised its position in Brighthouse Financial by 0.9% in the third quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 35,755 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,610,000 after purchasing an additional 319 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.24% of the company’s stock.

Brighthouse Financial Stock Performance

The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $52.37 and a 200 day simple moving average of $48.68. The company has a quick ratio of 0.92, a current ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63. The company has a market cap of $3.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.27 and a beta of 1.10.

Brighthouse Financial (NASDAQ:BHF) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The company reported $5.88 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.56 by $1.32. Brighthouse Financial had a return on equity of 26.94% and a net margin of 8.21%. As a group, analysts predict that Brighthouse Financial, Inc. will post 20.09 EPS for the current year.

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.