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

Brighthouse Financial, Inc. (NASDAQ:BHF) was the recipient of a large growth in short interest in October. As of October 31st, there was short interest totalling 1,070,000 shares, a growth of 19.5% from the October 15th total of 895,400 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 374,200 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 2.9 days. Approximately 1.8% of the shares of the company are sold short.

Brighthouse Financial Stock Performance

Brighthouse Financial stock traded down $0.12 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $50.97. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 560,780 shares, compared to its average volume of 440,244. The company has a quick ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 0.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56. Brighthouse Financial has a 52-week low of $40.00 and a 52-week high of $56.24. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $46.52 and its 200 day moving average is $45.51.

Brighthouse Financial (NASDAQ:BHF) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The company reported $3.99 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.50 by ($0.51). The company had revenue of $2.02 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.21 billion. Brighthouse Financial had a positive return on equity of 23.54% and a negative net margin of 24.40%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $4.18 earnings per share. Analysts anticipate that Brighthouse Financial will post 18.44 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on BHF shares. Evercore ISI reduced their price objective on shares of Brighthouse Financial from $56.00 to $52.00 and set an “in-line” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price objective on Brighthouse Financial from $59.00 to $63.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, July 29th. Barclays assumed coverage on Brighthouse Financial in a research report on Wednesday, September 4th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $48.00 target price on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price target on Brighthouse Financial from $47.00 to $43.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, August 14th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on Brighthouse Financial from $40.00 to $41.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Thursday, October 10th. 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 MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $50.63.

Insider Buying and Selling at Brighthouse Financial

In related news, CEO Eric T. Steigerwalt sold 25,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $45.67, for a total transaction of $1,141,750.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 321,072 shares in the company, valued at $14,663,358.24. This trade represents a 7.22 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP John Rosenthal sold 4,265 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, October 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $46.04, for a total value of $196,360.60. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 86,262 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,971,502.48. The trade was a 4.71 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 34,265 shares of company stock valued at $1,564,211 in the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 1.40% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Brighthouse Financial

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Brighthouse Financial by 0.7% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,091,462 shares of the company’s stock valued at $49,160,000 after buying an additional 8,004 shares during the last quarter. XTX Topco Ltd lifted its stake in Brighthouse Financial by 20.3% in the third quarter. XTX Topco Ltd now owns 27,974 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,260,000 after acquiring an additional 4,726 shares during the last quarter. Weiss Asset Management LP bought a new stake in Brighthouse Financial in the third quarter worth approximately $782,000. Two Sigma Advisers LP increased its stake in shares of Brighthouse Financial by 12.6% during the 3rd quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP now owns 320,700 shares of the company’s stock worth $14,441,000 after purchasing an additional 35,800 shares during the last quarter. Finally, State Street Corp raised its holdings in shares of Brighthouse Financial by 2.2% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 2,314,905 shares of the company’s stock valued at $104,240,000 after purchasing an additional 50,441 shares in the last quarter. 81.24% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.