Brighthouse Financial (NASDAQ:BHF) Price Target Raised to $46.00 at Morgan Stanley

Key Points

• Morgan Stanley has raised its price target for Brighthouse Financial from $42.00 to $46.00, maintaining an "underweight" rating despite the increase indicating a potential downside of 8.43% from the current stock price.
• Brighthouse Financial recently reported earnings of $3.43 per share, missing consensus estimates by $1.27, while revenue fell 2.8% year-over-year.
• Institutional investors hold a significant stake in the company, with 81.24% ownership, as several hedge funds have increased their positions in Brighthouse Financial recently.

Brighthouse Financial (NASDAQ:BHF - Get Free Report) had its price objective boosted by analysts at Morgan Stanley from $42.00 to $46.00 in a report issued on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has an "underweight" rating on the stock. Morgan Stanley's price target suggests a potential downside of 8.43% from the company's current price.

Other equities analysts also recently issued research reports about the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their target price on Brighthouse Financial from $57.00 to $50.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, August 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on Brighthouse Financial from $56.00 to $63.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 8th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "hold (c)" rating on shares of Brighthouse Financial in a research report on Saturday, September 27th. Piper Sandler reduced their price objective on Brighthouse Financial from $63.00 to $55.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, July 3rd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on Brighthouse Financial from $53.00 to $54.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 10th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has issued a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Brighthouse Financial currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $60.11.

Brighthouse Financial Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ BHF traded down $0.81 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $50.24. The stock had a trading volume of 124,851 shares, compared to its average volume of 935,394. The company has a market capitalization of $2.87 billion, a PE ratio of 5.44 and a beta of 0.86. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $48.32 and a 200-day simple moving average of $52.71. Brighthouse Financial has a 1 year low of $42.07 and a 1 year high of $64.12. The company has a quick ratio of 0.93, a current ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55.

Brighthouse Financial (NASDAQ:BHF - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, August 7th. The company reported $3.43 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.70 by ($1.27). The firm had revenue of $2.15 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.21 billion. Brighthouse Financial had a net margin of 10.24% and a return on equity of 21.06%. The business's revenue was down 2.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $5.57 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Brighthouse Financial will post 20.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Brighthouse Financial

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in BHF. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its stake in Brighthouse Financial by 66.5% during the second quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 566 shares of the company's stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 226 shares during the last quarter. IFP Advisors Inc increased its stake in Brighthouse Financial by 1,900.0% during the second quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 740 shares of the company's stock worth $40,000 after acquiring an additional 703 shares during the last quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group increased its stake in Brighthouse Financial by 42.0% during the first quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 764 shares of the company's stock worth $44,000 after acquiring an additional 226 shares during the last quarter. Ameriflex Group Inc. increased its stake in Brighthouse Financial by 12,371.4% during the second quarter. Ameriflex Group Inc. now owns 873 shares of the company's stock worth $47,000 after acquiring an additional 866 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Jones Financial Companies Lllp increased its stake in Brighthouse Financial by 835.2% during the first quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 823 shares of the company's stock worth $48,000 after acquiring an additional 735 shares during the last quarter. 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.

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