Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras (NYSE:PBR) Reaches New 52-Week High – Here’s What Happened

Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras (NYSE:PBR) hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $14.98 and last traded at $14.9430, with a volume of 9910287 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $14.34.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have commented on the company. UBS Group raised their price objective 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. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras in a report on Monday, December 29th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, January 17th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have issued a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $14.97.

Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras Price Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $100.05 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.19, a P/E/G ratio of 0.31 and a beta of 0.51. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $12.45 and its 200 day simple moving average is $12.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73, a current ratio of 0.82 and a quick ratio of 0.57.

Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras (NYSE:PBR) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, November 7th. The oil and gas exploration company reported $0.82 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.79 by $0.03. Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras had a net margin of 16.15% and a return on equity of 23.32%. On average, equities research analysts predict that Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras will post 2.14 EPS for the current year.

Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras Announces Dividend

The firm 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 dividend of $0.0658 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 26th. Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras’s dividend payout ratio is currently 21.76%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. ARGA Investment Management LP grew its holdings in Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras by 70.4% during the third quarter. ARGA Investment Management LP now owns 18,808,705 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock worth $238,118,000 after acquiring an additional 7,772,595 shares during the period. New York State Common Retirement Fund boosted its position in Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras by 6.9% in the 2nd quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund now owns 2,234,730 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock worth $27,956,000 after purchasing an additional 143,767 shares in the last quarter. Morningstar Investment Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras by 23.8% during the 2nd quarter. Morningstar Investment Management LLC now owns 298,508 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock worth $3,734,000 after purchasing an additional 57,437 shares during the period. Annex Advisory Services LLC increased its holdings in shares of Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras by 7.4% during the 3rd quarter. Annex Advisory Services LLC now owns 1,994,268 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock valued at $25,247,000 after purchasing an additional 137,370 shares in the last quarter. Finally, North of South Capital LLP lifted its stake in shares of Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras by 150.9% in the 3rd quarter. North of South Capital LLP now owns 285,373 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock valued at $3,613,000 after purchasing an additional 171,649 shares during the period.

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.