Vanguard Group Inc. Trims Stock Position in Brighthouse Financial, Inc. (NASDAQ:BHF)

Vanguard Group Inc. cut its stake in Brighthouse Financial, Inc. (NASDAQ:BHF) by 1.1% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 6,556,877 shares of the company’s stock after selling 74,475 shares during the quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. owned about 10.43% of Brighthouse Financial worth $346,990,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Royal Bank of Canada grew its stake in Brighthouse Financial by 29.7% in the third quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 2,073,894 shares of the company’s stock worth $101,496,000 after purchasing an additional 475,327 shares during the period. UBS Group AG grew its position in shares of Brighthouse Financial by 4.5% in the 4th quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 1,061,985 shares of the company’s stock worth $56,200,000 after buying an additional 45,938 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp increased its stake in shares of Brighthouse Financial by 0.3% in the 3rd quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 723,928 shares of the company’s stock worth $35,429,000 after acquiring an additional 2,438 shares in the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. lifted its position in Brighthouse Financial by 21.8% during the 3rd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 667,411 shares of the company’s stock valued at $32,663,000 after acquiring an additional 119,345 shares during the period. Finally, Norges Bank bought a new stake in Brighthouse Financial during the fourth quarter worth about $33,362,000. 81.24% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Brighthouse Financial Price Performance

BHF opened at $43.34 on Friday. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $45.04 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $48.43. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74, a quick ratio of 0.83 and a current ratio of 0.83. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.69 billion, a P/E ratio of -2.28 and a beta of 1.08. Brighthouse Financial, Inc. has a 52-week low of $40.24 and a 52-week high of $56.24.

Brighthouse Financial (NASDAQ:BHF) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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 negative net margin of 38.05% and a positive return on equity of 23.49%. 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 firm earned $2.86 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts predict that Brighthouse Financial, Inc. will post 17.37 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Brighthouse Financial

In other news, Director Michael J. Inserra purchased 2,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 30th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $43.20 per share, for a total transaction of $108,000.00. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 5,500 shares in the company, valued at approximately $237,600. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In other Brighthouse Financial news, Director Michael J. Inserra purchased 2,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 30th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $43.20 per share, for a total transaction of $108,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 5,500 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $237,600. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CFO Edward A. Spehar sold 7,125 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $41.91, for a total transaction of $298,608.75. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 44,765 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,876,101.15. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 1.40% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on BHF shares. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on shares of Brighthouse Financial from $51.00 to $50.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 10th. Evercore ISI lowered their price objective on Brighthouse Financial from $59.00 to $56.00 and set an “in-line” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday. Piper Sandler dropped their target price on Brighthouse Financial from $50.00 to $45.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Friday. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upgraded Brighthouse Financial from an “underperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and reduced their price target for the company from $48.00 to $47.00 in a report on Monday, June 17th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upped their price target on shares of Brighthouse Financial from $46.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and six have assigned a hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $49.38.

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.