Petrobras shares fluctuate upon balance sheet disclosure
Following the release of its 2014 financial results, Petrobras saw its shares shift trend from the end of the previous day. The preferred shares (which pay dividends to the shareholder) closed out Thursday (Apr. 23) 1.52% down, at $4.29, whereas the common shares (which carry voting rights in the company's board) closed at $4.67, up 5.63%.
The price drop in the preferred shares was seen after Petrobras CEO Aldemir Bendine announced that the company is not paying dividends this year. Dividends are a portion of the profits that a company publicly traded pays out to shareholders.
Petrobras closed out 2014 with a $7.28 billion deficit. The balance sheet reported losses of $2.06 related to the kickback scandal investigated by the Federal Police Operation Car Wash and a write-down of $14.83 billion worth of assets due to project planning issues and falling global oil prices.
Despite the loss, the largest for a publicly traded company since 1986, the company's natural gas production grew 5% last year. Pre-salt oil production hit a record daily average of 381,000 barrels in 2014. In refining, oil products totaled 2.17 million barrels per day, 2% up from the 2013 production.
The IBOVESPA stock index in São Paulo closed out the day up 1.85%, at 55,685. Besides the common share hike for Petrobras, the recovery was prompted by a 8.43% hike in the shares of Vale mining company, an important component in the index.
Translated by Mayra Borges
Fonte: Petrobras shares fluctuate upon balance sheet disclosure
