MQS Management LLC Makes New $277,000 Investment in Brighthouse Financial, Inc. (NASDAQ:BHF)

MQS Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Brighthouse Financial, Inc. (NASDAQ:BHF) during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 6,155 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $277,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System lifted its holdings in Brighthouse Financial by 39.4% during the first quarter. State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System now owns 84,570 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,359,000 after purchasing an additional 23,922 shares during the last quarter. Seven Eight Capital LP lifted its stake in shares of Brighthouse Financial by 342.1% during the 1st quarter. Seven Eight Capital LP now owns 28,063 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,446,000 after buying an additional 21,716 shares in the last quarter. Lighthouse Investment Partners LLC boosted its holdings in Brighthouse Financial by 204.6% in the 2nd quarter. Lighthouse Investment Partners LLC now owns 135,730 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,883,000 after buying an additional 91,175 shares during the period. Edgestream Partners L.P. boosted its holdings in Brighthouse Financial by 12.7% in the 2nd quarter. Edgestream Partners L.P. now owns 153,789 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,665,000 after buying an additional 17,329 shares during the period. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. purchased a new position in Brighthouse Financial in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $3,439,000. Institutional investors own 81.24% of the company’s stock.

Brighthouse Financial Trading Down 0.5 %

Shares of BHF opened at $51.09 on Friday. Brighthouse Financial, Inc. has a 1-year low of $40.00 and a 1-year high of $56.24. The company has a market capitalization of $3.03 billion, a P/E ratio of -2.51 and a beta of 1.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56, a current ratio of 0.92 and a quick ratio of 0.85. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $46.35 and its 200 day simple moving average is $45.51.

Brighthouse Financial (NASDAQ:BHF) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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). The company had revenue of $2.02 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate 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 in the prior year, the firm posted $4.18 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts forecast that Brighthouse Financial, Inc. will post 18.44 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on BHF shares. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price target on Brighthouse Financial from $59.00 to $63.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, July 29th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Brighthouse Financial from $40.00 to $41.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Evercore ISI decreased their price target on Brighthouse Financial from $56.00 to $52.00 and set an “in-line” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their price objective on shares of Brighthouse Financial from $47.00 to $43.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, August 14th. Finally, Barclays initiated coverage on shares of Brighthouse Financial in a research note on Wednesday, September 4th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $48.00 price objective for the company. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $50.63.

Insider Transactions at Brighthouse Financial

In related news, CEO Eric T. Steigerwalt sold 25,000 shares of Brighthouse Financial stock in a transaction on Monday, August 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $45.67, for a total value of $1,141,750.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 321,072 shares in the company, valued at $14,663,358.24. This trade represents a 7.22 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP John Rosenthal sold 5,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $45.22, for a total transaction of $226,100.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 91,262 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,126,867.64. The trade was a 5.19 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 34,265 shares of company stock worth $1,564,211. 1.40% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.