Petroleo Brasileiro SA (PBR) hit the put side of today's option skews scan. That is noteworthy because this stock has tended to be showered with enthusiasm. Earlier this month we saw some call activity on Petrobras so it is worth looking into the stock to see if the sentiment is shifting. We start by examining the put/call ratio and analyst ratings.

Here we see that the overall put/call ratio is still locked in a downtrend as it is lower than 94% of the readings taken in the last year. So, while we did see some buy-to-open put activity on Friday, we would need to see more in order for the overall put/call ratio to turn around. Meanwhile, analysts haven't changed their view. According to Zacks, 5 of 7 analysts still rank the stock with a "buy" rating.

A check of the technical action shows the stock is still in the process of trying to form a bottom. Shares of PBR put in a low near the end of November and have since staged a bounce. The last check of the chart showed they were testing the mid-December highs and no real progress has been made there.

Chart Courtesy of Thomson Financial

Overall, it seems that optimism is still the dominant sentiment on the company but I think this deserves continued surveillance. The most interesting scenario would be if we see the shares break above their recent highs and see continued put activity. In other words, this could be an attractive situation if we see signs of strength combined with skepticism that it will continue.