Brokerages Set Petróleo Brasileiro S.A. – Petrobras (NYSE:PBR) Target Price at $18.07

Petróleo Brasileiro S.A. – Petrobras (NYSE:PBR) has been assigned an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the seven ratings firms that are covering the firm, Marketbeat Ratings reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 12-month target price among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $18.20.

Several analysts recently weighed in on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of Petróleo Brasileiro S.A. – Petrobras from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $16.50 to $19.00 in a report on Wednesday. Bank of America upgraded shares of Petróleo Brasileiro S.A. – Petrobras from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $16.80 to $17.90 in a report on Thursday, June 27th. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their target price on shares of Petróleo Brasileiro S.A. – Petrobras from $19.30 to $16.70 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, August 13th. UBS Group dropped their target price on shares of Petróleo Brasileiro S.A. – Petrobras from $19.40 to $18.10 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, August 19th. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised shares of Petróleo Brasileiro S.A. – Petrobras from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their price target for the company from $18.00 to $20.00 in a research report on Monday, August 26th.

Petróleo Brasileiro S.A. – Petrobras Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE PBR opened at $14.56 on Tuesday. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $14.67 and a 200-day simple moving average of $15.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a quick ratio of 0.67 and a current ratio of 0.90. Petróleo Brasileiro S.A. – Petrobras has a 1 year low of $12.90 and a 1 year high of $17.91.

Petróleo Brasileiro S.A. – Petrobras (NYSE:PBR) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, August 8th. The oil and gas exploration company reported $0.47 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.47. Petróleo Brasileiro S.A. – Petrobras had a net margin of 16.17% and a return on equity of 28.42%. The firm had revenue of $23.47 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $24.22 billion. On average, analysts anticipate that Petróleo Brasileiro S.A. – Petrobras will post 2.65 EPS for the current year.

Petróleo Brasileiro S.A. – Petrobras Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a Variable dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 29th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 23rd will be given a $0.165 dividend. This represents a yield of 15.4%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 23rd. This is a boost from Petróleo Brasileiro S.A. – Petrobras’s previous Variable dividend of $0.03. Petróleo Brasileiro S.A. – Petrobras’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 25.00%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Petróleo Brasileiro S.A. – Petrobras

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership purchased a new stake in shares of Petróleo Brasileiro S.A. – Petrobras during the 4th quarter worth $218,758,000. Encompass Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Petróleo Brasileiro S.A. – Petrobras during the 2nd quarter worth $73,174,000. Perpetual Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Petróleo Brasileiro S.A. – Petrobras during the 1st quarter worth $56,337,000. Norden Group LLC lifted its position in shares of Petróleo Brasileiro S.A. – Petrobras by 3,457.9% during the 1st quarter. Norden Group LLC now owns 2,919,298 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock worth $44,403,000 after purchasing an additional 2,837,247 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mondrian Investment Partners LTD lifted its position in shares of Petróleo Brasileiro S.A. – Petrobras by 23.0% during the 2nd quarter. Mondrian Investment Partners LTD now owns 10,099,766 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock worth $144,124,000 after purchasing an additional 1,889,313 shares during the last quarter.

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.