Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras (NYSE:PBR) Trading Down 3.9% – What’s Next?

Shares of Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras (NYSE:PBR) were down 3.9% on Tuesday . The stock traded as low as $17.88 and last traded at $17.87. Approximately 2,470,555 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 89% from the average session volume of 22,417,086 shares. The stock had previously closed at $18.60.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

PBR has been the topic of several recent research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras from $24.00 to $23.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, June 3rd. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras in a research note on Friday, August 7th. Finally, Zacks Research downgraded shares of Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 7th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $19.28.

Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64, a current ratio of 0.85 and a quick ratio of 0.58. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $17.71 and a 200 day simple moving average of $18.49. The company has a market capitalization of $114.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 4.48, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.78 and a beta of 0.33.

Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a special dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 1st. Investors of record on Tuesday, August 25th will be issued a $0.2649 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, August 25th. Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras’s payout ratio is presently 8.59%.

Institutional Trading of Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Capital International Investors boosted its position 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 valued at $363,052,000 after acquiring an additional 10,425,563 shares during the last quarter. Oaktree Capital Management LP purchased a new stake in shares of Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $126,355,000. DJE Kapital AG acquired a new position in Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras in the first quarter valued at approximately $65,428,000. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio acquired a new position in Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras in the second quarter valued at approximately $42,858,000. Finally, DNB Asset Management AS purchased a new position in Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras in the fourth quarter worth approximately $21,778,000.

About Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras

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.