Brighthouse Financial (NASDAQ:BHF) Given New $70.00 Price Target at Barclays

Brighthouse Financial (NASDAQ:BHF - Get Free Report) had its price target dropped by research analysts at Barclays from $76.00 to $70.00 in a research report issued on Monday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has an "overweight" rating on the stock. Barclays's price objective suggests a potential upside of 34.13% from the company's previous close.

A number of other research analysts also recently commented on BHF. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on shares of Brighthouse Financial from $59.00 to $52.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 10th. Raymond James Financial raised shares of Brighthouse Financial from a "market perform" rating to a "strong-buy" rating and set a $72.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Tuesday, March 18th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price objective on shares of Brighthouse Financial from $56.00 to $59.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 13th. Piper Sandler reduced their target price on Brighthouse Financial from $63.00 to $55.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, July 3rd. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered Brighthouse Financial from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, June 21st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, one has issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $60.40.

Brighthouse Financial Stock Performance

NASDAQ BHF traded up $1.49 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $52.19. The company's stock had a trading volume of 542,888 shares, compared to its average volume of 620,284. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $57.63 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $55.35. The company has a market cap of $3.00 billion, a P/E ratio of 6.26 and a beta of 0.88. Brighthouse Financial has a 12 month low of $40.00 and a 12 month high of $64.12. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59, a current ratio of 0.91 and a quick ratio of 0.91.

Brighthouse Financial (NASDAQ:BHF - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 8th. The company reported $4.17 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $4.72 by ($0.55). Brighthouse Financial had a net margin of 8.71% and a return on equity of 25.60%. The company had revenue of $2.16 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.29 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $4.25 earnings per share. The company's revenue was up 6.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Brighthouse Financial will post 20.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Brighthouse Financial

In related news, EVP Vonda Huss sold 3,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $59.51, for a total transaction of $178,530.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 18,441 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,097,423.91. The trade was a 13.99% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 1.40% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Brighthouse Financial

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in BHF. Versant Capital Management Inc lifted its stake in Brighthouse Financial by 188.0% during the 1st quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 622 shares of the company's stock worth $36,000 after acquiring an additional 406 shares in the last quarter. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd grew its stake in Brighthouse Financial by 327.0% during the 4th quarter. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd now owns 918 shares of the company's stock worth $44,000 after buying an additional 703 shares during the last quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group lifted its position in Brighthouse Financial by 42.0% during the 1st quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 764 shares of the company's stock worth $44,000 after acquiring an additional 226 shares during the period. Jones Financial Companies Lllp lifted its holdings in shares of Brighthouse Financial by 835.2% in the 1st quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 823 shares of the company's stock valued at $48,000 after buying an additional 735 shares during the period. Finally, UMB Bank n.a. lifted its holdings in shares of Brighthouse Financial by 101.7% in the 1st quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 1,200 shares of the company's stock valued at $70,000 after buying an additional 605 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.24% of the company's stock.

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.