Piper Sandler Lowers Brighthouse Financial (NASDAQ:BHF) Price Target to $50.00

Brighthouse Financial (NASDAQ:BHF) had its target price cut by Piper Sandler from $55.00 to $50.00 in a research report issued on Friday, Benzinga reports. The firm presently has a “neutral” rating on the stock. Piper Sandler’s price target would suggest a potential upside of 7.37% from the company’s current price.

Several other brokerages have also issued reports on BHF. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on Brighthouse Financial from $49.00 to $51.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, April 11th. Morgan Stanley cut shares of Brighthouse Financial from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and set a $52.00 price objective for the company. in a report on Friday, February 23rd. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods restated an “underperform” rating and set a $50.00 target price on shares of Brighthouse Financial in a report on Friday, February 16th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and four have issued a hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Brighthouse Financial presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $50.43.

Brighthouse Financial Stock Up 1.7 %

Shares of Brighthouse Financial stock opened at $46.57 on Friday. Brighthouse Financial has a 1 year low of $39.24 and a 1 year high of $56.24. The company has a market cap of $2.91 billion, a P/E ratio of -2.51 and a beta of 1.14. The company has a current ratio of 0.80, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $48.57 and a 200 day moving average price of $49.81.

Brighthouse Financial (NASDAQ:BHF) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 7th. The company reported $4.25 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.96 by $0.29. The business had revenue of $2.04 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.14 billion. Brighthouse Financial had a negative net margin of 27.01% and a positive return on equity of 20.71%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 4.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $2.86 earnings per share. As a group, analysts expect that Brighthouse Financial will post 17.12 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Brighthouse Financial

In other news, CEO Eric T. Steigerwalt sold 25,000 shares of Brighthouse Financial stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $46.96, for a total value of $1,174,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 390,765 shares in the company, valued at $18,350,324.40. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other Brighthouse Financial news, EVP Vonda Huss sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $46.85, for a total transaction of $468,500.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 27,080 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,268,698. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Eric T. Steigerwalt sold 25,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $46.96, for a total value of $1,174,000.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 390,765 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $18,350,324.40. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 1.40% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Brighthouse Financial

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Private Management Group Inc. boosted its stake in Brighthouse Financial by 1.9% during the 1st quarter. Private Management Group Inc. now owns 340,683 shares of the company’s stock worth $17,559,000 after acquiring an additional 6,496 shares during the last quarter. State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System raised its stake in Brighthouse Financial by 39.4% during the 1st quarter. State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System now owns 84,570 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,359,000 after buying an additional 23,922 shares during the period. Entropy Technologies LP acquired a new stake in Brighthouse Financial during the 1st quarter worth $370,000. US Bancorp DE lifted its holdings in Brighthouse Financial by 0.6% during the first quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 35,695 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,840,000 after acquiring an additional 211 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Russell Investments Group Ltd. grew its stake in Brighthouse Financial by 0.9% in the first quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 226,045 shares of the company’s stock valued at $11,650,000 after acquiring an additional 1,942 shares during the period. 81.24% of the stock is owned by 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.