Stock Traders Buy Large Volume of Put Options on Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras (NYSE:PBR)

Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras (NYSE:PBR) was the target of some unusual options trading on Friday. Investors bought 171,050 put options on the company. This is an increase of approximately 334% compared to the average daily volume of 39,410 put options.

Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras Trading Down 1.3%

Shares of NYSE PBR opened at $15.32 on Friday. Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras has a 12-month low of $11.03 and a 12-month high of $15.94. The company has a market cap of $98.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.09, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.32 and a beta of 0.51. The company has a current ratio of 0.82, a quick ratio of 0.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $12.56 and its 200 day simple moving average is $12.46.

Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras (NYSE:PBR) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, November 7th. The oil and gas exploration company reported $0.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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%. Equities research analysts expect that Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras will post 2.14 EPS for the current year.

Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a special dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 27th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 26th will be given a dividend of $0.0658 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 26th. Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras’s payout ratio is 21.76%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Financial Gravity Companies Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $26,000. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. raised its holdings in Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras by 74.9% during the second quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 2,438 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 1,044 shares in the last quarter. Chung Wu Investment Group LLC acquired a new stake in Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras in the second quarter worth approximately $31,000. Finally, Whipplewood Advisors LLC lifted its position in Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras by 45.7% in the second quarter. Whipplewood Advisors LLC now owns 2,875 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 902 shares during the period.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have recently commented on PBR. UBS Group upped 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 Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.- Petrobras from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, January 17th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have assigned a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $14.97.

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.