Jackson Financial (NYSE:JXN) Rating Increased to Strong-Buy at Zacks Research

Key Points

• Jackson Financial has been upgraded to a "strong-buy" rating from Zacks Research, indicating increased confidence from analysts in the stock's performance.
• Several analysts have revised their price targets for Jackson Financial, with Morgan Stanley increasing theirs from $97.00 to $106.00 and Barclays from $118.00 to $125.00.
• The company has authorized a $1.00 billion stock repurchase plan, signaling that the board believes the shares are currently undervalued.

Jackson Financial (NYSE:JXN - Get Free Report) was upgraded by equities researchers at Zacks Research from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report released on Monday,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other analysts have also recently commented on JXN. Weiss Ratings reissued a "hold (c-)" rating on shares of Jackson Financial in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on Jackson Financial from $97.00 to $106.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 7th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price target on Jackson Financial from $105.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research report on Thursday, October 9th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price target on Jackson Financial from $88.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, August 11th. Finally, Barclays boosted their price target on Jackson Financial from $118.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has assigned a Buy rating, four have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $109.20.

Jackson Financial Trading Up 4.1%

NYSE JXN opened at $99.42 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $6.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -1,656.67 and a beta of 1.45. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $97.80 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $87.90. The company has a quick ratio of 0.28, a current ratio of 0.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46. Jackson Financial has a twelve month low of $64.70 and a twelve month high of $115.22.

Jackson Financial (NYSE:JXN - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, March 22nd. The company reported $6.26 EPS for the quarter. Jackson Financial had a return on equity of 14.73% and a net margin of 1.73%.The firm had revenue of ($1,162.00) million for the quarter. Research analysts forecast that Jackson Financial will post 20.55 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Jackson Financial declared that its board has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Thursday, September 18th that permits the company to buyback $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to purchase up to 14.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are generally a sign that the company's board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Jackson Financial

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of JXN. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Jackson Financial during the 2nd quarter valued at $102,131,000. Nuveen LLC bought a new position in shares of Jackson Financial during the 1st quarter valued at $43,830,000. Millennium Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Jackson Financial by 296.7% during the 1st quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 658,468 shares of the company's stock valued at $55,166,000 after buying an additional 492,492 shares during the period. LSV Asset Management lifted its holdings in shares of Jackson Financial by 28.3% during the 2nd quarter. LSV Asset Management now owns 836,238 shares of the company's stock valued at $74,250,000 after buying an additional 184,440 shares during the period. Finally, Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Jackson Financial by 144.4% during the 1st quarter. Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC now owns 253,504 shares of the company's stock valued at $21,239,000 after buying an additional 149,799 shares during the period. 89.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Jackson Financial Company Profile

Jackson Financial Inc, through its subsidiaries, provides suite of annuities to retail investors in the United States. The company operates through three segments: Retail Annuities, Institutional Products, and Closed Life and Annuity Blocks. The Retail Annuities segment offers various retirement income and savings products, including variable, fixed index, fixed, and payout annuities, as well as registered index-linked annuities and lifetime income solutions.

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