Brighthouse Financial (NASDAQ:BHF) Raised to “Hold” at Wall Street Zen

Brighthouse Financial (NASDAQ:BHF) was upgraded by investment analysts at Wall Street Zen to a “hold” rating in a research note issued on Sunday.

A number of other equities analysts have also recently commented on the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reiterated a “hold” rating and set a $67.00 price target on shares of Brighthouse Financial in a report on Thursday, March 26th. Weiss Ratings cut Brighthouse Financial from a “hold (c)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a research report on Monday, May 11th. Zacks Research raised Brighthouse Financial from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, May 18th. Finally, Argus upgraded Brighthouse Financial to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 26th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Brighthouse Financial presently has an average rating of “Reduce” and an average target price of $60.50.

Brighthouse Financial Stock Up 0.6%

Shares of NASDAQ:BHF traded up $0.39 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $66.00. The stock had a trading volume of 517,968 shares, compared to its average volume of 445,171. The company has a market cap of $3.79 billion, a P/E ratio of -22.15 and a beta of 0.86. Brighthouse Financial has a 12 month low of $42.07 and a 12 month high of $66.33. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $62.97 and its 200-day simple moving average is $62.62. The company has a quick ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56.

Brighthouse Financial (NASDAQ:BHF) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The company reported $4.35 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.57 by ($0.22). Brighthouse Financial had a positive return on equity of 16.88% and a negative net margin of 1.10%.The firm had revenue of $2.10 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.20 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $4.17 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was down 29.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Brighthouse Financial will post 19.41 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Brighthouse Financial

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. NewEdge Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Brighthouse Financial by 442.5% in the fourth quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 434 shares of the company’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 354 shares during the last quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. boosted its stake in Brighthouse Financial by 390.3% in the 1st quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 505 shares of the company’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 402 shares during the period. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in Brighthouse Financial by 66.5% in the 2nd quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 566 shares of the company’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 226 shares during the period. Danske Bank A S acquired a new position in Brighthouse Financial in the 3rd quarter valued at $37,000. Finally, Torren Management LLC acquired a new position in Brighthouse Financial in the 4th quarter valued at $50,000. 81.24% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Brighthouse Financial Company Profile

Brighthouse Financial, Inc is a U.S.-based life insurance company that specializes in retirement income solutions and annuity products. The firm was established in August 2017 as a spin-off from MetLife, Inc, and is headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina. Since its separation, Brighthouse Financial has focused on providing products designed to help individuals and families manage retirement income needs, drawing on decades of experience in life insurance and annuity administration inherited from its parent company.

The company’s core product offerings include fixed indexed annuities, which allow policyholders to participate in market-linked gains while protecting against downside market risk, and single premium immediate annuities, which provide guaranteed lifetime income.