Brighthouse Financial (NASDAQ:BHF) Lowered to Hold Rating by Jefferies Financial Group

Brighthouse Financial (NASDAQ:BHF - Get Free Report) was downgraded by Jefferies Financial Group from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note issued on Monday, MarketBeat Ratings reports. They currently have a $64.00 target price on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group's price objective would suggest a potential upside of 7.56% from the stock's previous close.

Other analysts have also issued research reports about the company. Piper Sandler decreased their price target on Brighthouse Financial from $55.00 to $52.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, December 18th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on shares of Brighthouse Financial from $42.00 to $41.00 and set an "underweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. Barclays raised shares of Brighthouse Financial from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and lifted their price target for the company from $52.00 to $85.00 in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on shares of Brighthouse Financial from $59.00 to $56.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price target on Brighthouse Financial from $48.00 to $60.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $57.75.

Brighthouse Financial Stock Performance

Brighthouse Financial stock traded down $0.46 on Monday, hitting $59.50. The company's stock had a trading volume of 935,390 shares, compared to its average volume of 680,804. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $50.60 and a 200-day moving average price of $47.87. The firm has a market cap of $3.53 billion, a P/E ratio of -2.93 and a beta of 1.10. Brighthouse Financial has a one year low of $40.00 and a one year high of $64.00. The company has a quick ratio of 0.92, a current ratio of 0.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56.

Brighthouse Financial (NASDAQ:BHF - Get Free Report) last posted 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 business had revenue of $2.02 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.21 billion. Brighthouse Financial had a positive return on equity of 23.54% and a negative net margin of 24.40%. During the same period last year, the company earned $4.18 EPS. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Brighthouse Financial will post 18.2 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other Brighthouse Financial news, EVP Myles Lambert sold 8,400 shares of the 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 transaction, the executive vice president now owns 33,407 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,727,141.90. This represents a 20.09 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP John Rosenthal sold 10,000 shares of the business'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 transaction, the executive vice president now owns 66,262 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,041,982. The trade was a 13.11 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.40% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Brighthouse Financial

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. State Street Corp increased its stake in Brighthouse Financial by 2.2% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 2,314,905 shares of the company's stock worth $104,240,000 after purchasing an additional 50,441 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Brighthouse Financial by 0.7% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,091,462 shares of the company's stock valued at $49,160,000 after buying an additional 8,004 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its position in shares of Brighthouse Financial by 1.8% during the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 525,388 shares of the company's stock worth $25,240,000 after acquiring an additional 9,500 shares in the last quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP raised its holdings in shares of Brighthouse Financial by 12.6% during the third quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP now owns 320,700 shares of the company's stock worth $14,441,000 after acquiring an additional 35,800 shares during the period. Finally, Millennium Management LLC lifted its position in Brighthouse Financial by 278.0% in the 2nd quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 280,270 shares of the company's stock valued at $12,147,000 after acquiring an additional 206,116 shares in the last quarter. 81.24% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.