Brighthouse Financial (NASDAQ:BHF) Sees Large Volume Increase - Time to Buy?

Brighthouse Financial, Inc. (NASDAQ:BHF - Get Free Report) shares saw unusually-strong trading volume on Tuesday . Approximately 875,172 shares were traded during trading, an increase of 193% from the previous session's volume of 298,403 shares.The stock last traded at $61.66 and had previously closed at $51.09.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have recently commented on BHF. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on Brighthouse Financial from $59.00 to $56.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Barclays raised their price objective on shares of Brighthouse Financial from $48.00 to $52.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Monday, December 16th. Piper Sandler decreased their target price on shares of Brighthouse Financial from $55.00 to $52.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, December 18th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on shares of Brighthouse Financial from $42.00 to $41.00 and set an "underweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. Three equities research 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. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $51.38.

Brighthouse Financial Stock Up 14.2 %

The stock's 50-day moving average price is $49.65 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $47.43. The company has a current ratio of 0.92, a quick ratio of 0.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.46 billion, a P/E ratio of -2.87 and a beta of 1.08.

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 analysts' consensus estimates of $4.50 by ($0.51). Brighthouse Financial had a positive return on equity of 23.54% and a negative net margin of 24.40%. The firm had revenue of $2.02 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.21 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $4.18 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts expect that Brighthouse Financial, Inc. will post 18.2 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other 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 completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 33,407 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,727,141.90. The trade was a 20.09 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 1.40% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Bank of Montreal Can grew its position in Brighthouse Financial by 11.1% in the second quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 97,132 shares of the company's stock worth $4,257,000 after acquiring an additional 9,711 shares in the last quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC boosted its stake in Brighthouse Financial by 608.1% in the second quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC now owns 157,164 shares of the company's stock worth $6,811,000 after buying an additional 134,969 shares in the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Brighthouse Financial by 11.7% during the second quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 172,958 shares of the company's stock worth $7,496,000 after acquiring an additional 18,082 shares in the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Brighthouse Financial by 278.0% in the 2nd quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 280,270 shares of the company's stock worth $12,147,000 after acquiring an additional 206,116 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Quarry LP bought a new position in shares of Brighthouse Financial during the 2nd quarter valued at $89,000. 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.