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

Key Points

• Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras experienced a significant increase in call options trading, with 50,858 options purchased, marking a 91% rise from the average daily volume.
• The company recently declared a special dividend of $0.0739 per share, set to be paid on December 30th, reflecting a payout ratio of 48.13%.
• Despite reporting quarterly earnings of $0.64 per share, which missed estimates, Petrobras generated revenue of $21.04 billion, exceeding the consensus forecast.

Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras (NYSE:PBR - Get Free Report) was the target of some unusual options trading activity on Friday. Traders bought 50,858 call options on the stock. This is an increase of 91% compared to the average daily volume of 26,559 call options.

Institutional Trading of Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. GTS Securities LLC acquired a new position in shares of Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras in the 4th quarter worth approximately $281,000. Parallel Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras by 78.8% in the 1st quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 32,584 shares of the oil and gas exploration company's stock worth $467,000 after purchasing an additional 14,358 shares during the last quarter. Viking Fund Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras by 15.0% in the 1st quarter. Viking Fund Management LLC now owns 23,000 shares of the oil and gas exploration company's stock worth $330,000 after purchasing an additional 3,000 shares during the last quarter. Annex Advisory Services LLC grew its stake in shares of Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras by 20.5% in the 1st quarter. Annex Advisory Services LLC now owns 1,818,558 shares of the oil and gas exploration company's stock worth $26,078,000 after purchasing an additional 309,752 shares during the last quarter. Finally, SeaCrest Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras by 3.6% in the 1st quarter. SeaCrest Wealth Management LLC now owns 58,125 shares of the oil and gas exploration company's stock worth $834,000 after purchasing an additional 2,012 shares during the last quarter.

Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras Stock Performance

NYSE:PBR traded up $0.07 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $13.18. The stock had a trading volume of 4,367,664 shares, compared to its average volume of 21,003,766. The stock has a market capitalization of $84.96 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.17 and a beta of 0.91. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $12.50 and a 200-day simple moving average of $12.42. Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras has a 52 week low of $11.03 and a 52 week high of $15.34. The company has a current ratio of 0.72, a quick ratio of 0.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76.

Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras (NYSE:PBR - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, August 8th. The oil and gas exploration company reported $0.64 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.70 by ($0.06). Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras had a net margin of 15.99% and a return on equity of 34.11%. The firm had revenue of $21.04 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $20.78 billion. On average, research analysts expect that Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras will post 2.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a special dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 25th will be given a dividend of $0.0739 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 25th. Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras's payout ratio is 48.13%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Zacks Research lowered shares of Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, September 18th. Bank of America lowered shares of Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, June 9th. Finally, UBS Group decreased their price target on shares of Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras from $15.80 to $14.40 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Friday, August 22nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have issued a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $15.43.

About Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras

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.

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