Brighthouse Financial (NASDAQ:BHF) Hits New 52-Week High - Here's Why

Brighthouse Financial, Inc. (NASDAQ:BHF - Get Free Report) shares hit a new 52-week high during trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $64.00 and last traded at $58.33, with a volume of 3111434 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $51.09.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have recently commented on BHF shares. Barclays upgraded Brighthouse Financial from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and upped their price target for the stock from $52.00 to $85.00 in a report on Wednesday. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on shares of Brighthouse Financial from $48.00 to $60.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research note on Wednesday. Wells Fargo & Company decreased 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. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on shares of Brighthouse Financial from $59.00 to $56.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Finally, Piper Sandler decreased their target price on Brighthouse Financial from $55.00 to $52.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, December 18th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $57.63.

Brighthouse Financial Price Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $3.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -3.05 and a beta of 1.08. 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 company has a 50 day moving average price of $49.89 and a 200 day moving average price of $47.54.

Brighthouse Financial (NASDAQ:BHF - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The company reported $3.99 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate 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 business had revenue of $2.02 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.21 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $4.18 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Brighthouse Financial, Inc. will post 18.2 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Myles Lambert sold 8,400 shares of Brighthouse Financial 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 sale, the executive vice president now owns 33,407 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,727,141.90. The trade was a 20.09 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 1.40% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Brighthouse Financial

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Joel Isaacson & Co. LLC acquired a new stake in Brighthouse Financial during the fourth quarter worth approximately $643,000. Lecap Asset Management Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of Brighthouse Financial by 9.1% in the 4th quarter. Lecap Asset Management Ltd. now owns 5,234 shares of the company's stock valued at $251,000 after purchasing an additional 436 shares in the last quarter. Institute for Wealth Management LLC. bought a new stake in shares of Brighthouse Financial during the 4th quarter worth $287,000. KBC Group NV raised its stake in Brighthouse Financial by 33.1% during the fourth quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 2,664 shares of the company's stock worth $128,000 after acquiring an additional 663 shares in the last quarter. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC bought a new position in shares of Brighthouse Financial in the 4th quarter valued at $312,000. 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.