Brighthouse Financial (NASDAQ:BHF) Price Target Raised to $47.00 at Piper Sandler

Brighthouse Financial (NASDAQ:BHF) had its target price upped by Piper Sandler from $44.00 to $47.00 in a research note published on Wednesday morning, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a neutral rating on the stock.

BHF has been the subject of a number of other reports. Evercore ISI cut their price objective on Brighthouse Financial from $56.00 to $52.00 and set an in-line rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. Barclays initiated coverage on Brighthouse Financial in a report on Wednesday, September 4th. They set an equal weight rating and a $48.00 price target for the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price target on Brighthouse Financial from $47.00 to $43.00 and set a market perform rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, August 14th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price target on Brighthouse Financial from $59.00 to $63.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a report on Monday, July 29th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on Brighthouse Financial from $58.00 to $59.00 and gave the stock an underweight rating in a report on Tuesday, July 2nd. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of Hold and a consensus target price of $50.50.

Brighthouse Financial Stock Performance

BHF opened at $44.25 on Wednesday. Brighthouse Financial has a 12-month low of $40.00 and a 12-month high of $56.24. The stock has a market cap of $2.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -2.32 and a beta of 1.06. The business has a 50 day moving average of $44.45 and a 200-day moving average of $45.73. The company has a quick ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75.

Brighthouse Financial (NASDAQ:BHF) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 7th. The company reported $5.57 earnings per share (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 company had revenue of $2.21 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.21 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $4.13 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 3.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts expect that Brighthouse Financial will post 18.16 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Brighthouse Financial

In other Brighthouse Financial news, CEO Eric T. Steigerwalt sold 25,000 shares of Brighthouse Financial stock in a transaction on Monday, August 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $45.67, for a total value of $1,141,750.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 321,072 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $14,663,358.24. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In other news, CFO Edward A. Spehar sold 7,125 shares of Brighthouse Financial stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $41.74, for a total value of $297,397.50. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 37,640 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,571,093.60. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Eric T. Steigerwalt sold 25,000 shares of Brighthouse Financial stock in a transaction on Monday, August 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $45.67, for a total value of $1,141,750.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 321,072 shares in the company, valued at approximately $14,663,358.24. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 42,125 shares of company stock valued at $1,895,248 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 1.40% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Brighthouse Financial

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of BHF. Pinnacle Holdings LLC increased its stake in shares of Brighthouse Financial by 3.6% in the 4th quarter. Pinnacle Holdings LLC now owns 41,867 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,216,000 after purchasing an additional 1,457 shares during the last quarter. Oracle Alpha Inc. bought a new stake in Brighthouse Financial during the 4th quarter worth $644,000. Alaska Permanent Fund Corp grew its position in Brighthouse Financial by 1.7% during the 1st quarter. Alaska Permanent Fund Corp now owns 52,642 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,713,000 after acquiring an additional 898 shares during the last quarter. Range Financial Group LLC grew its position in Brighthouse Financial by 18.0% during the 1st quarter. Range Financial Group LLC now owns 11,096 shares of the company’s stock worth $572,000 after acquiring an additional 1,693 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC grew its position in Brighthouse Financial by 11.8% during the 1st quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 87,859 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,528,000 after acquiring an additional 9,300 shares during the last quarter. 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.