UBS Group AG Boosts Holdings in Brighthouse Financial, Inc. (NASDAQ:BHF)

UBS Group AG lifted its position in Brighthouse Financial, Inc. (NASDAQ:BHF) by 4.5% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 1,061,985 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 45,938 shares during the quarter. UBS Group AG owned 1.65% of Brighthouse Financial worth $56,200,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Royal Bank of Canada grew its stake in Brighthouse Financial by 29.7% in the 3rd quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 2,073,894 shares of the company’s stock valued at $101,496,000 after acquiring an additional 475,327 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp grew its stake in Brighthouse Financial by 0.3% in the 3rd quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 723,928 shares of the company’s stock valued at $35,429,000 after acquiring an additional 2,438 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. grew its stake in Brighthouse Financial by 21.8% in 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. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Brighthouse Financial in the 4th quarter valued at $33,362,000. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Brighthouse Financial by 2.0% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 441,234 shares of the company’s stock valued at $23,350,000 after purchasing an additional 8,471 shares in the last quarter. 81.24% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Vonda Huss sold 10,000 shares of Brighthouse Financial stock in a transaction on Monday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $46.85, for a total value of $468,500.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 27,080 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,268,698. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In other Brighthouse Financial news, CEO Eric T. Steigerwalt sold 25,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $46.96, for a total transaction of $1,174,000.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 390,765 shares in the company, valued at approximately $18,350,324.40. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Vonda Huss sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction 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 sale, the executive vice president now owns 27,080 shares in the company, valued at $1,268,698. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 1.40% of the company’s stock.

Brighthouse Financial Trading Up 0.2 %

Brighthouse Financial stock opened at $43.30 on Friday. 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 firm has a 50-day moving average price of $48.25 and a 200-day moving average price of $49.75. Brighthouse Financial, Inc. has a 12-month low of $39.62 and a 12-month high of $56.24.

Brighthouse Financial (NASDAQ:BHF) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, May 7th. The company reported $4.25 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 firm had revenue of $2.04 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.14 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.86 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 4.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts expect that Brighthouse Financial, Inc. will post 16.27 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have weighed in on BHF. Piper Sandler reduced their price objective on Brighthouse Financial from $55.00 to $50.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 10th. Morgan Stanley lowered Brighthouse Financial from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and set a $52.00 price objective on the stock. in a research note on Friday, February 23rd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reaffirmed an “underperform” rating and set a $50.00 price objective on shares of Brighthouse Financial in a research note on Friday, February 16th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on Brighthouse Financial from $51.00 to $50.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 10th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and four have assigned a hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $50.29.

Brighthouse Financial 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.