Piper Sandler Cuts Brighthouse Financial (NASDAQ:BHF) Price Target to $45.00

Brighthouse Financial (NASDAQ:BHF) had its target price lowered by Piper Sandler from $50.00 to $45.00 in a research note released on Friday morning, Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a neutral rating on the stock.

Other analysts have also recently issued research reports about the stock. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on shares of Brighthouse Financial from $51.00 to $50.00 and set an equal weight rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 10th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upgraded Brighthouse Financial from an underperform rating to a market perform rating and cut their price target for the company from $48.00 to $47.00 in a research note on Monday, June 17th. Finally, Evercore ISI lowered their price objective on Brighthouse Financial from $59.00 to $56.00 and set an in-line rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, June 26th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and six have assigned a hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Brighthouse Financial has a consensus rating of Hold and an average target price of $49.38.

Brighthouse Financial Price Performance

Brighthouse Financial stock opened at $43.34 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $2.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -2.28 and a beta of 1.08. The company has a current ratio of 0.83, a quick ratio of 0.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74. Brighthouse Financial has a 12 month low of $40.24 and a 12 month high of $56.24. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $45.04 and its 200-day moving average is $48.35.

Brighthouse Financial (NASDAQ:BHF) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 7th. The company reported $4.25 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.96 by $0.29. Brighthouse Financial had a positive return on equity of 23.49% and a negative net margin of 38.05%. The firm had revenue of $2.04 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.14 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.86 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.2% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts expect that Brighthouse Financial will post 17.37 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Brighthouse Financial

In related news, CFO Edward A. Spehar sold 7,125 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $41.91, for a total value of $298,608.75. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 44,765 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,876,101.15. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other Brighthouse Financial news, CFO Edward A. Spehar sold 7,125 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $41.91, for a total value of $298,608.75. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 44,765 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,876,101.15. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Michael J. Inserra purchased 2,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 30th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $43.20 per share, for a total transaction of $108,000.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 5,500 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $237,600. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Company insiders own 1.40% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Brighthouse Financial

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Royal Bank of Canada lifted its holdings in shares of Brighthouse Financial by 29.7% during the third quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 2,073,894 shares of the company’s stock worth $101,496,000 after purchasing an additional 475,327 shares during the period. UBS Group AG raised its position in Brighthouse Financial by 4.5% during the 4th quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 1,061,985 shares of the company’s stock worth $56,200,000 after purchasing an additional 45,938 shares during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp raised its position in Brighthouse Financial by 0.3% during the 3rd quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 723,928 shares of the company’s stock worth $35,429,000 after purchasing an additional 2,438 shares during the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. lifted its holdings in Brighthouse Financial by 21.8% during the 3rd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 667,411 shares of the company’s stock worth $32,663,000 after buying an additional 119,345 shares during the period. Finally, Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Brighthouse Financial in the 4th quarter valued at about $33,362,000. 81.24% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.