Sona Asset Management US LLC Invests $1.25 Million in Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras $PBR

Key Points

• Sona Asset Management acquired 60,000 Petrobras shares in the first quarter, valued at approximately $1.25 million, while several other funds also initiated or increased positions.
• Analyst sentiment is generally positive: five analysts rate Petrobras a Buy, one rates it Hold, and one rates it Sell, producing a Moderate Buy consensus with an average price target of $19.28.
• Petrobras reported quarterly EPS of $0.96 on $23.54 billion in revenue and declared a special $0.1426-per-share dividend; the stock recently opened at $18.77.

Sona Asset Management US LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras (NYSE:PBR - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 60,000 shares of the oil and gas exploration company's stock, valued at approximately $1,245,000.

Several other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras during the 4th quarter worth about $26,000. Clearstead Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras by 273.4% in the fourth quarter. Clearstead Advisors LLC now owns 2,330 shares of the oil and gas exploration company's stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 1,706 shares during the period. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras by 74.9% in the second quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 2,438 shares of the oil and gas exploration company's stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 1,044 shares during the period. Bayforest Capital Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras in the fourth quarter worth about $39,000. Finally, Ascentis Independent Advisors purchased a new position in shares of Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras in the first quarter worth about $51,000.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on PBR shares. Zacks Research downgraded Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 7th. Bank of America upgraded shares of Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and increased their price target for the stock from $18.70 to $24.80 in a report on Friday, April 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on shares of Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras from $24.00 to $23.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, June 3rd. Finally, 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. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $19.28.

Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras Stock Performance

NYSE PBR opened at $18.77 on Monday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $17.88 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $17.74. The firm has a market capitalization of $120.93 billion, a P/E ratio of 6.09, a PEG ratio of 0.83 and a beta of 0.33. Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras has a fifty-two week low of $11.43 and a fifty-two week high of $22.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a quick ratio of 0.49 and a current ratio of 0.74.

Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras (NYSE:PBR - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, March 31st. The oil and gas exploration company reported $0.96 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. The business had revenue of $23.54 billion during the quarter. Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras had a return on equity of 23.65% and a net margin of 21.67%. On average, equities analysts forecast that Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras will post 4.28 earnings per share for the current year.

Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a special dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 27th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, June 3rd will be issued a $0.1426 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, June 3rd. Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras's payout ratio is presently 11.04%.

Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras 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.

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