Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras Target of Unusually Large Options Trading (NYSE:PBR)

Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras (NYSE:PBR) was the recipient of unusually large options trading activity on Monday. Investors acquired 68,297 call options on the stock. This is an increase of 53% compared to the average volume of 44,761 call options.

Institutional Trading of Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Mondrian Investment Partners LTD acquired a new stake in Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras in the third quarter valued at about $140,433,000. Capital International Investors raised its stake in shares of Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras by 51.6% during the 4th quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 30,637,308 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock worth $363,052,000 after buying an additional 10,425,563 shares in the last quarter. ARGA Investment Management LP lifted its holdings in shares of Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras by 70.4% in the 3rd quarter. ARGA Investment Management LP now owns 18,808,705 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock valued at $238,118,000 after buying an additional 7,772,595 shares during the period. ICICI Prudential Asset Management Co Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras in the third quarter valued at approximately $35,144,000. Finally, DNB Asset Management AS acquired a new position in Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras during the fourth quarter worth $21,778,000.

Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:PBR opened at $16.97 on Wednesday. Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras has a 12 month low of $11.03 and a 12 month high of $17.34. The firm has a market capitalization of $109.36 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.86, a P/E/G ratio of 0.30 and a beta of 0.51. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73, a current ratio of 0.82 and a quick ratio of 0.57. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $14.08 and its 200 day moving average price is $12.96.

Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a special dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 27th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 26th will be issued a $0.0658 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 26th. Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras’s dividend payout ratio is presently 18.52%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have commented on PBR shares. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price target on shares of Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras from $13.10 to $15.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 11th. Wall Street Zen raised Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, January 17th. UBS Group upped their price target on Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras from $14.40 to $14.60 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 14th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $14.98.

Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras Company Profile

Petróleo 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.