Short Interest in Petróleo Brasileiro S.A. – Petrobras (NYSE:PBR) Decreases By 19.8%

Petróleo Brasileiro S.A. – Petrobras (NYSE:PBR) was the target of a significant decrease in short interest during the month of May. As of May 31st, there was short interest totalling 23,520,000 shares, a decrease of 19.8% from the May 15th total of 29,340,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 21,070,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 1.1 days.

Petróleo Brasileiro S.A. – Petrobras Stock Performance

Shares of PBR traded down $0.21 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $13.59. 21,339,799 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 17,449,846. Petróleo Brasileiro S.A. – Petrobras has a fifty-two week low of $13.02 and a fifty-two week high of $17.91. The company has a quick ratio of 0.81, a current ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $15.80 and its 200-day moving average is $15.92.

Petróleo Brasileiro S.A. – Petrobras (NYSE:PBR) last released its earnings results on Monday, May 13th. The oil and gas exploration company reported $0.75 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.84 by ($0.09). Petróleo Brasileiro S.A. – Petrobras had a return on equity of 31.07% and a net margin of 22.46%. The firm had revenue of $23.77 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $24.63 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.11 earnings per share. On average, analysts forecast that Petróleo Brasileiro S.A. – Petrobras will post 3.54 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Petróleo Brasileiro S.A. – Petrobras Cuts Dividend

The company also recently announced a Variable dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 27th. Investors of record on Thursday, June 13th will be paid a dividend of $0.0288 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, June 13th. This represents a dividend yield of 16%. Petróleo Brasileiro S.A. – Petrobras’s payout ratio is 26.45%.

Institutional Trading of Petróleo Brasileiro S.A. – Petrobras

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in PBR. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in Petróleo Brasileiro S.A. – Petrobras by 460.2% in the first quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,787 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 1,468 shares during the last quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC purchased a new position in shares of Petróleo Brasileiro S.A. – Petrobras during the fourth quarter worth approximately $45,000. Frank Rimerman Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Petróleo Brasileiro S.A. – Petrobras during the fourth quarter worth approximately $54,000. SYSTM Wealth Solutions LLC grew its position in shares of Petróleo Brasileiro S.A. – Petrobras by 210.6% during the first quarter. SYSTM Wealth Solutions LLC now owns 3,998 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock worth $61,000 after acquiring an additional 2,711 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Founders Capital Management grew its position in shares of Petróleo Brasileiro S.A. – Petrobras by 17.5% during the first quarter. Founders Capital Management now owns 4,700 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock worth $71,000 after acquiring an additional 700 shares during the last quarter.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on PBR shares. UBS Group raised their price objective on shares of Petróleo Brasileiro S.A. – Petrobras from $17.20 to $17.40 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, March 25th. HSBC upgraded shares of Petróleo Brasileiro S.A. – Petrobras from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $18.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Monday, March 25th. Bank of America cut shares of Petróleo Brasileiro S.A. – Petrobras from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $16.00 price objective for the company. in a research report on Friday, March 8th. Morgan Stanley cut shares of Petróleo Brasileiro S.A. – Petrobras from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and cut their price objective for the stock from $20.00 to $18.00 in a research report on Monday, March 11th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group cut shares of Petróleo Brasileiro S.A. – Petrobras from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and dropped their price target for the company from $21.20 to $17.70 in a research report on Wednesday, May 15th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Petróleo Brasileiro S.A. – Petrobras has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $16.33.

Petróleo Brasileiro S.A. – Petrobras Company Profile

Petróleo Brasileiro SA – Petrobras explores, produces, and sells oil and gas in Brazil and internationally. The company operates through Exploration and Production; Refining, Transportation and Marketing; and Gas and Power. It also engages in prospecting, drilling, refining, processing, trading, and transporting crude oil from producing onshore and offshore oil fields, and shale or other rocks, as well as oil products, natural gas, and other liquid hydrocarbons.