Petrobras posts third-highest profit as Middle East conflict lifts oil prices (updated)

Petroleo Brasileiro SA Petrobras

07/08/2026 24:02

Rewrites with details, information from earnings, press release
By Fabio Teixeira and Marta Nogueira
RIO DE JANEIRO, Aug 6 (Reuters) - Brazil's state-run oil firm Petrobras PETR3.SA reported a rise of 96% in second-quarter net profit to 52.4 billion reais, the third highest in its history, as surging oil prices due to the U.S.-Iran conflict boosted results.
Petrobras' earnings were above the 44.7 billion reais expected in an LSEG poll.    
The company will pay 17.4 billion reais, or about 1.35 reais per share, in dividends and interest on equity to shareholders, it said in a separate filing.
"The operational records we achieved in this second quarter led to one of the strongest quarterly financial results in Petrobras' history," said Chief Financial Officer Fernando Melgarejo in a statement.
Adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) grew 79.6% year over year to 93.8 billion reais, beating analysts' estimates of 90.1 billion reais.    
Even though results beat market expectations, Petrobras' earnings were negatively impacted by decisions made by Brazil's government to keep fuel prices low after the closure of the Strait of Hormuz sent fuel prices up in the country.
Over the April-June period, the firm paid around 4.9 billion reais to the government due to a 12% export tax on crude oil and diesel, introduced after the U.S.-Iran conflict began.
The firm's operating cash flow suffered from a delay in receiving 9.7 billion reais from the government in subsidies for participating in fuel price controls. 
Petrobras invested about $5.3 billion in the quarter, up almost 20% over the same period of last year. Of this amount, 82% was allocated to exploration and production, said Petrobras, to sustain the company's upward production curve.
The company released last week its quarterly production and sales report, posting higher oil and gas production, as well as lower fuel imports as it pushed its refineries to their limit amid the conflict in the Middle East.
Net revenue grew 42.3% in quarter from a year earlier to 169.5 billion reais, above the 160.4 billion reais forecast by analysts.
($1 = 5.1101 reais)

 (Reporting by Fabio Teixeira and Marta Nogueira in Rio de Janeiro; additional reporting by Andre Romani in Sao Paulo; Editing by Chris Reese, Kylie Madry and Cynthia Osterman)
 ((Andre.Romani@thomsonreuters.com; 11 991314109;11 56447500;))