Brighthouse Financial, Inc. (NASDAQ:BHF) Given Average Rating of "Reduce" by Analysts

Brighthouse Financial, Inc. (NASDAQ:BHF - Get Free Report) has been given a consensus recommendation of "Reduce" by the eight brokerages that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat reports. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, four have assigned a hold recommendation and one has issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 12-month price objective among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $51.75.

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of Brighthouse Financial from $40.00 to $41.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Piper Sandler reduced their target price on Brighthouse Financial from $55.00 to $52.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, December 18th. Finally, Barclays upped their price target on Brighthouse Financial from $48.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Monday, December 16th.

Brighthouse Financial Trading Down 1.2 %

NASDAQ:BHF traded down $0.58 on Friday, reaching $48.22. 174,401 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 419,096. The company has a current ratio of 0.92, a quick ratio of 0.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56. Brighthouse Financial has a 1-year low of $40.00 and a 1-year high of $54.73. The company's 50 day moving average is $49.76 and its 200-day moving average is $46.48. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.86 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -2.37 and a beta of 1.06.

Brighthouse Financial (NASDAQ:BHF - Get Free Report) last released its 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). Brighthouse Financial had a negative net margin of 24.40% and a positive return on equity of 23.54%. The firm had revenue of $2.02 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.21 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $4.18 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that Brighthouse Financial will post 18.47 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Myles Lambert sold 8,400 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $51.70, for a total transaction of $434,280.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 33,407 shares in the company, valued at $1,727,141.90. This represents a 20.09 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, EVP John Rosenthal sold 4,265 shares of the firm'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 transaction of $196,360.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 86,262 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,971,502.48. This trade represents a 4.71 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 1.40% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Venturi Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 564 shares in the last quarter. UMB Bank n.a. grew its stake in 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 in the last quarter. CWM LLC increased its holdings in shares of Brighthouse Financial by 29.4% in the 3rd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 1,491 shares of the company's stock worth $67,000 after buying an additional 339 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its position in shares of Brighthouse Financial by 97.8% during the 3rd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,729 shares of the company's stock valued at $78,000 after buying an additional 855 shares in the last quarter. Finally, KBC Group NV grew its position in Brighthouse Financial by 30.2% in the third quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 2,001 shares of the company's stock worth $90,000 after acquiring an additional 464 shares in the last quarter. 81.24% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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 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.