The Goldman Sachs Group Boosts Ecopetrol (NYSE:EC) Price Target to $11.90

Ecopetrol (NYSE:EC) had its price objective boosted by investment analysts at The Goldman Sachs Group from $10.30 to $11.90 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Thursday, Benzinga reports. The firm presently has a “neutral” rating on the oil and gas company’s stock. The Goldman Sachs Group’s price objective points to a potential upside of 3.21% from the stock’s current price.

EC has been the subject of a number of other research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on Ecopetrol from $12.50 to $12.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, February 20th. Morgan Stanley lowered shares of Ecopetrol from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and dropped their price target for the stock from $11.00 to $8.50 in a research note on Monday, March 4th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and five have given a hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $11.27.

Ecopetrol Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE EC traded up $0.08 during trading on Thursday, reaching $11.53. 319,843 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,018,682. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $11.50 and its 200 day moving average price is $11.88. Ecopetrol has a twelve month low of $8.59 and a twelve month high of $13.14. The company has a current ratio of 1.47, a quick ratio of 1.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.90.

Institutional Trading of Ecopetrol

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. BlackRock Inc. increased its position in Ecopetrol by 45.5% in the second quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 7,161,233 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $73,403,000 after buying an additional 2,239,289 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Ecopetrol by 1.0% during the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 3,086,272 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $35,739,000 after acquiring an additional 29,731 shares during the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC boosted its stake in Ecopetrol by 215.8% during the 4th quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 2,381,687 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $24,936,000 after purchasing an additional 1,627,411 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its position in Ecopetrol by 85.9% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 1,518,254 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $17,581,000 after purchasing an additional 701,706 shares during the last quarter. Finally, SPX Gestao de Recursos Ltda acquired a new stake in shares of Ecopetrol in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $15,652,000.

Ecopetrol Company Profile

Ecopetrol SA operates as an integrated energy company. The company operates through four segments: Exploration and Production; Transport and Logistics; Refining, Petrochemical and Biofuels; and Electric Power Transmission and Toll Roads Concessions. It engages in the exploration and production of oil and gas; transportation of crude oil, motor fuels, fuel oil, and other refined products, including diesel, jet, and biofuels; processing and refining crude oil; distribution of natural gas and LPG; sale of refined and petrochemical products; supplying of electric power transmission services; design, development, construction, operation, and maintenance of road and energy infrastructure projects; and supplying of information technology and telecommunications services.