Brighthouse Financial, Inc. (NASDAQ:BHF) Sees Significant Increase in Short Interest

Brighthouse Financial, Inc. (NASDAQ:BHF - Get Free Report) saw a significant increase in short interest in April. As of April 30th, there was short interest totalling 1,210,000 shares, an increase of 6.1% from the April 15th total of 1,140,000 shares. Currently, 2.0% of the company's shares are short sold. Based on an average trading volume of 494,800 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 2.4 days.

Brighthouse Financial Stock Performance

BHF stock traded up $0.57 during trading on Thursday, reaching $46.22. The stock had a trading volume of 459,902 shares, compared to its average volume of 464,083. Brighthouse Financial has a 52 week low of $39.62 and a 52 week high of $56.24. The stock's 50 day moving average is $48.58 and its two-hundred day moving average is $49.84. The company has a current ratio of 0.83, a quick ratio of 0.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74. The firm has a market cap of $2.87 billion, a PE ratio of -2.43 and a beta of 1.14.

Brighthouse Financial (NASDAQ:BHF - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, May 7th. The company reported $4.25 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $3.96 by $0.29. Brighthouse Financial had a positive return on equity of 23.49% and a negative net margin of 38.05%. The company had revenue of $2.04 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.14 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.86 earnings per share. Brighthouse Financial's revenue was up 4.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Brighthouse Financial will post 17.49 earnings per share for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages recently weighed in on BHF. Piper Sandler reduced their price target on Brighthouse Financial from $55.00 to $50.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, May 10th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reissued an "underperform" rating and issued a $50.00 target price on shares of Brighthouse Financial in a research note on Friday, February 16th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on Brighthouse Financial from $51.00 to $50.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, May 10th. Finally, Morgan Stanley cut Brighthouse Financial from an "equal weight" rating to an "underweight" rating and set a $52.00 target price on the stock. in a research note on Friday, February 23rd. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and four have issued a hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $50.29.

Insider Activity at Brighthouse Financial

In related news, EVP Vonda Huss sold 10,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $46.85, for a total transaction of $468,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 27,080 shares in the company, valued at $1,268,698. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, CEO Eric T. Steigerwalt sold 25,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $46.96, for a total value of $1,174,000.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 390,765 shares of the company's stock, valued at $18,350,324.40. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Vonda Huss sold 10,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $46.85, for a total value of $468,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 27,080 shares in the company, valued at $1,268,698. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.40% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in BHF. Lindbrook Capital LLC raised its stake in shares of Brighthouse Financial by 412.3% in the fourth quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 543 shares of the company's stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 437 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc. raised its stake in shares of Brighthouse Financial by 123.2% in the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 732 shares of the company's stock worth $36,000 after buying an additional 404 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC bought a new position in shares of Brighthouse Financial in the fourth quarter worth about $60,000. Quadrant Capital Group LLC raised its stake in shares of Brighthouse Financial by 36.1% in the fourth quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 1,143 shares of the company's stock worth $60,000 after buying an additional 303 shares during the period. Finally, Quent Capital LLC grew its position in shares of Brighthouse Financial by 23.0% during the fourth quarter. Quent Capital LLC now owns 2,046 shares of the company's stock worth $108,000 after purchasing an additional 382 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 81.24% of the company's stock.

Brighthouse Financial Company Profile

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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