Brighthouse Financial (NASDAQ:BHF) Given New $54.00 Price Target at Wells Fargo & Company

Brighthouse Financial (NASDAQ:BHF - Get Free Report) had its price objective lifted by equities research analysts at Wells Fargo & Company from $53.00 to $54.00 in a report released on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an "equal weight" rating on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company's price target indicates a potential upside of 3.59% from the company's current price.

Several other brokerages also recently weighed in on BHF. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price target on Brighthouse Financial from $56.00 to $59.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 13th. UBS Group set a $72.00 price objective on shares of Brighthouse Financial in a research note on Tuesday, March 18th. Piper Sandler cut their target price on Brighthouse Financial from $63.00 to $55.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, July 3rd. Raymond James Financial raised Brighthouse Financial from a "market perform" rating to a "strong-buy" rating and set a $72.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, March 18th. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on shares of Brighthouse Financial from $41.00 to $45.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research report on Monday, May 19th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $60.60.

Brighthouse Financial Stock Performance

NASDAQ BHF traded up $0.12 on Thursday, hitting $52.13. 644,097 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 620,854. Brighthouse Financial has a 52-week low of $40.00 and a 52-week high of $64.12. The company has a current ratio of 0.91, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59. The company has a market capitalization of $2.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.25 and a beta of 0.88. The business's 50 day moving average price is $57.29 and its 200-day moving average price is $55.33.

Brighthouse Financial (NASDAQ:BHF - Get Free Report) last issued its 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 25.60% and a net margin of 8.71%. The company had revenue of $2.16 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.29 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $4.25 EPS. Brighthouse Financial's revenue was up 6.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts expect that Brighthouse Financial will post 20.32 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity at Brighthouse Financial

In related news, EVP Vonda Huss sold 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, June 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $59.51, for a total transaction of $178,530.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 18,441 shares in the company, valued at $1,097,423.91. This represents a 13.99% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Company insiders own 1.40% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Versant Capital Management Inc grew its holdings in Brighthouse Financial by 188.0% during the 1st quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 622 shares of the company's stock valued at $36,000 after buying an additional 406 shares during the last quarter. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd raised its holdings 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 worth $44,000 after purchasing an additional 703 shares during the period. Brooklyn Investment Group raised its holdings in Brighthouse Financial by 42.0% in the first quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 764 shares of the company's stock valued at $44,000 after buying an additional 226 shares during the period. Jones Financial Companies Lllp lifted its holdings in shares of Brighthouse Financial by 835.2% during the 1st quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 823 shares of the company's stock valued at $48,000 after acquiring an additional 735 shares in the last quarter. Finally, UMB Bank n.a. lifted its stake in shares of Brighthouse Financial by 101.7% during the first quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 1,200 shares of the company's stock worth $70,000 after purchasing an additional 605 shares in 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.