LPL Financial LLC Increases Stake in Brighthouse Financial, Inc. (NASDAQ:BHF)

LPL Financial LLC increased its stake in shares of Brighthouse Financial, Inc. (NASDAQ:BHF - Free Report) by 55.3% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 39,545 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 14,084 shares during the period. LPL Financial LLC owned approximately 0.07% of Brighthouse Financial worth $1,900,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Victory Capital Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Brighthouse Financial by 2,632.8% in the 4th quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 884,162 shares of the company's stock worth $42,475,000 after purchasing an additional 851,808 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Brighthouse Financial by 12.1% during the 4th quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 1,682,076 shares of the company's stock worth $80,807,000 after acquiring an additional 181,980 shares during the last quarter. Ieq Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of Brighthouse Financial during the 4th quarter valued at $1,748,000. Wealthfront Advisers LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Brighthouse Financial in the 4th quarter worth $1,477,000. Finally, Range Financial Group LLC bought a new position in Brighthouse Financial in the 4th quarter worth $826,000. Institutional investors own 81.24% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP John Rosenthal sold 10,000 shares of Brighthouse Financial stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $61.00, for a total transaction of $610,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 66,262 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,041,982. The trade was a 13.11 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 1.40% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have recently commented on the company. Barclays raised Brighthouse Financial from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $52.00 to $85.00 in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. Piper Sandler upped their price target on shares of Brighthouse Financial from $52.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on shares of Brighthouse Financial from $52.00 to $41.00 and set an "underweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 10th. UBS Group set a $72.00 price target on Brighthouse Financial in a research note on Tuesday, March 18th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price objective on Brighthouse Financial from $60.00 to $66.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating, one has given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $62.00.

Brighthouse Financial Price Performance

Brighthouse Financial stock traded up $0.93 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $50.65. 520,964 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 536,963. Brighthouse Financial, Inc. has a 12-month low of $40.00 and a 12-month high of $64.12. 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 stock has a 50 day moving average of $55.77 and a two-hundred day moving average of $52.27. The company has a market cap of $2.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.82 and a beta of 0.91.

Brighthouse Financial (NASDAQ:BHF - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The company reported $5.88 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $4.56 by $1.32. Brighthouse Financial had a net margin of 8.21% and a return on equity of 26.94%. Equities analysts forecast that Brighthouse Financial, Inc. will post 20.32 earnings per share for the current year.

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.