JPMorgan Chase & Co. Issues Pessimistic Forecast for Brighthouse Financial (NASDAQ:BHF) Stock Price

Brighthouse Financial (NASDAQ:BHF) had its price objective lowered by stock analysts at JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $59.00 to $56.00 in a report issued on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has an “underweight” rating on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co.‘s price objective indicates a potential upside of 16.13% from the stock’s current price.

A number of other research firms also recently weighed in on BHF. Barclays lifted their price target on shares of Brighthouse Financial from $48.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, December 16th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of Brighthouse Financial from $40.00 to $41.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Finally, Piper Sandler lowered their price objective on Brighthouse Financial from $55.00 to $52.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, December 18th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Brighthouse Financial presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $51.38.

Brighthouse Financial Stock Performance

NASDAQ BHF traded up $0.18 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $48.22. The company had a trading volume of 132,073 shares, compared to its average volume of 248,002. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $49.72 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $46.80. The stock has a market cap of $2.86 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -2.37 and a beta of 1.08. The company has a quick ratio of 0.92, a current ratio of 0.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56. Brighthouse Financial has a fifty-two week low of $40.00 and a fifty-two week high of $54.73.

Brighthouse Financial (NASDAQ:BHF) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The company reported $3.99 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.50 by ($0.51). Brighthouse Financial had a negative net margin of 24.40% and a positive return on equity of 23.54%. The firm had revenue of $2.02 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.21 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $4.18 earnings per share. Equities analysts forecast that Brighthouse Financial will post 18.47 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Brighthouse Financial news, EVP Myles Lambert sold 8,400 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $51.70, for a total transaction of $434,280.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 33,407 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,727,141.90. The trade was a 20.09 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP John Rosenthal sold 4,265 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, October 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $46.04, for a total value of $196,360.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 86,262 shares in the company, valued at $3,971,502.48. This represents a 4.71 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 1.40% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Brighthouse Financial

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. UMB Bank n.a. grew its holdings in shares of Brighthouse Financial by 974.1% in the 3rd quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 623 shares of the company’s stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 565 shares during the period. Venturi Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in Brighthouse Financial by 989.5% in the third quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 621 shares of the company’s stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 564 shares during the period. CWM LLC raised its position in shares of Brighthouse Financial by 29.4% during the third quarter. CWM LLC now owns 1,491 shares of the company’s stock worth $67,000 after purchasing an additional 339 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its position in shares of Brighthouse Financial by 97.8% during the third quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,729 shares of the company’s stock worth $78,000 after purchasing an additional 855 shares during the period. Finally, Quarry LP bought a new position in Brighthouse Financial in the second quarter valued at approximately $89,000. 81.24% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.