Assetmark Inc. Raises Stake in Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras (NYSE:PBR)

Key Points

• Assetmark Inc. has increased its holdings in Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras by 12.5%, acquiring a total of 1,008,475 shares valued at approximately $14.46 million.
• Several hedge funds have also shown interest in Petrobras, with increases in holdings from firms such as Redwood Park Advisors LLC and Kapitalo Investimentos Ltda during the first quarter.
• Jefferies Financial Group has upgraded Petrobras to a "buy" rating, setting a target price of $15.30, while the average analyst rating for the stock currently stands at "Buy" with a target of $17.40.

Assetmark Inc. increased its stake in Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras (NYSE:PBR - Free Report) by 12.5% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,008,475 shares of the oil and gas exploration company's stock after acquiring an additional 111,757 shares during the quarter. Assetmark Inc.'s holdings in Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras were worth $14,462,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Dodge & Cox increased its stake in shares of Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras by 4.8% in the 4th quarter. Dodge & Cox now owns 17,300 shares of the oil and gas exploration company's stock valued at $222,000 after acquiring an additional 800 shares in the last quarter. Vise Technologies Inc. increased its stake in shares of Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras by 5.1% in the 4th quarter. Vise Technologies Inc. now owns 33,916 shares of the oil and gas exploration company's stock valued at $436,000 after acquiring an additional 1,633 shares in the last quarter. Redwood Park Advisors LLC increased its stake in Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras by 95.6% during the 1st quarter. Redwood Park Advisors LLC now owns 3,703 shares of the oil and gas exploration company's stock valued at $53,000 after purchasing an additional 1,810 shares in the last quarter. Poehling Capital Management INC. increased its stake in Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras by 0.8% during the 4th quarter. Poehling Capital Management INC. now owns 228,299 shares of the oil and gas exploration company's stock valued at $2,936,000 after purchasing an additional 1,870 shares in the last quarter. Finally, SeaCrest Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras by 3.6% during the 1st quarter. SeaCrest Wealth Management LLC now owns 58,125 shares of the oil and gas exploration company's stock valued at $834,000 after purchasing an additional 2,012 shares in the last quarter.

Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras Stock Down 0.5%

PBR traded down $0.06 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $12.54. 48,900,263 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 20,869,871. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76, a quick ratio of 0.47 and a current ratio of 0.72. The stock has a market capitalization of $80.81 billion, a PE ratio of 9.36 and a beta of 0.85. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $12.30 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $12.81. Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras has a 1 year low of $11.03 and a 1 year high of $15.73.

Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a -- dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 27th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, June 4th will be issued a dividend of $0.2806 per share. This represents a yield of 17.6%. This is an increase from Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras's previous -- dividend of $0.24. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, June 4th. Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras's payout ratio is currently 73.88%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have commented on PBR shares. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $15.30 price target for the company in a research note on Thursday, May 15th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 14th. Finally, Bank of America lowered shares of Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, June 9th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $17.40.

Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras Profile

Petróleo Brasileiro SA - Petrobras explores, produces, and sells oil and gas in Brazil and internationally. The company operates through three segments: Exploration and Production; Refining, Transportation and Marketing; and Gas and Power. The Exploration and Production segment explores, develops, and produces crude oil, natural gas liquids, and natural gas primarily for supplies to the domestic refineries.