Jefferies Financial Group Inc. Sells 8,149 Shares of Brighthouse Financial, Inc. (NASDAQ:BHF)

Jefferies Financial Group Inc. lowered its position in shares of Brighthouse Financial, Inc. (NASDAQ:BHF - Free Report) by 5.8% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 131,902 shares of the company's stock after selling 8,149 shares during the quarter. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. owned 0.22% of Brighthouse Financial worth $6,337,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd boosted its position in shares of Brighthouse Financial by 327.0% in the 4th quarter. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd now owns 918 shares of the company's stock valued at $44,000 after purchasing an additional 703 shares during the period. KBC Group NV boosted its position in shares of Brighthouse Financial by 33.1% in the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 2,664 shares of the company's stock valued at $128,000 after purchasing an additional 663 shares during the period. Dark Forest Capital Management LP acquired a new position in shares of Brighthouse Financial in the 4th quarter valued at $217,000. Guggenheim Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of Brighthouse Financial in the 4th quarter valued at $227,000. Finally, Polymer Capital Management US LLC acquired a new position in shares of Brighthouse Financial in the 4th quarter valued at $233,000. Institutional investors own 81.24% of the company's stock.

Brighthouse Financial Stock Up 2.2%

Shares of BHF traded up $1.29 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $60.99. 899,859 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 570,758. Brighthouse Financial, Inc. has a 12-month low of $40.00 and a 12-month high of $64.12. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $55.20 and a 200-day simple moving average of $53.56. The company has a quick ratio of 0.92, a current ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63. The company has a market cap of $3.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.82 and a beta of 0.96.

Brighthouse Financial (NASDAQ:BHF - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 8th. The company reported $4.17 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $4.72 by ($0.55). Brighthouse Financial had a return on equity of 26.94% and a net margin of 8.21%. The firm had revenue of $2.16 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.29 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $4.25 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 6.1% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts forecast that Brighthouse Financial, Inc. will post 20.32 EPS for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms recently weighed in on BHF. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price target on Brighthouse Financial from $56.00 to $59.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research report on Tuesday. UBS Group set a $72.00 price objective on Brighthouse Financial in a research report on Tuesday, March 18th. Barclays raised their price objective on Brighthouse Financial from $75.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, May 9th. Piper Sandler raised their price objective on Brighthouse Financial from $52.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on Brighthouse Financial from $52.00 to $41.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 10th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $60.40.

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.