Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras Sees Unusually Large Options Volume (NYSE:PBR)

Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras (NYSE:PBR) was the target of some unusual options trading activity on Tuesday. Investors acquired 144,467 call options on the company. This represents an increase of 120% compared to the average volume of 65,567 call options.

Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras Stock Down 0.8%

Shares of PBR stock traded down $0.15 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $18.73. 15,399,791 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 17,063,196. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a quick ratio of 0.49 and a current ratio of 0.74. The firm has a market capitalization of $120.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.11, a P/E/G ratio of 0.75 and a beta of 0.32. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $20.43 and its 200 day simple moving average is $16.35. Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras has a twelve month low of $11.03 and a twelve month high of $22.24.

Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras (NYSE:PBR) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, March 31st. The oil and gas exploration company reported $0.96 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras had a net margin of 21.67% and a return on equity of 23.65%. The firm had revenue of $23.54 billion during the quarter. As a group, analysts forecast that Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras will post 4.72 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a special dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 27th. Investors of record on Wednesday, June 3rd will be given a dividend of $0.1426 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, June 3rd. Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras’s payout ratio is 10.39%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

PBR has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, May 28th. Bank of America raised shares of Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $18.70 to $24.80 in a research report on Friday, April 17th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras from a “hold (c)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 12th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Sunday, March 22nd. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group cut shares of Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and dropped their target price for the stock from $20.30 to $19.00 in a report on Friday, March 13th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $18.35.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of PBR. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras during the 4th quarter worth about $26,000. Clearstead Advisors LLC lifted its position in Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras by 273.4% during the 4th quarter. Clearstead Advisors LLC now owns 2,330 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 1,706 shares in the last quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. lifted its position in Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras by 74.9% during the 2nd quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 2,438 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 1,044 shares in the last quarter. Ascentis Independent Advisors acquired a new position in Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras during the 1st quarter worth about $51,000. Finally, Harbor Investment Advisory LLC acquired a new position in Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras during the 1st quarter valued at about $54,000.

About Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras

Petro?leo Brasileiro SA – Petrobras is a Brazilian, state-controlled integrated oil and gas company headquartered in Rio de Janeiro. Founded in 1953, Petrobras is principally engaged in the exploration and production of crude oil and natural gas, and operates across the full value chain from upstream activities through refining, transportation and downstream marketing of petroleum products. The company is a major player in Brazil’s energy sector and is a listed public company with global capital market presence.

Petrobras’s core activities include deepwater and ultra-deepwater exploration and production, where it has been a pioneer in developing pre-salt reserves off Brazil’s coast.