Analysts Set Ecopetrol S.A. (NYSE:EC) Price Target at $13.14

Shares of Ecopetrol S.A. (NYSE:EC) have received an average rating of “Reduce” from the eight brokerages that are covering the firm, MarketBeat reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and seven have issued a hold rating on the company. The average 1-year price objective among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $13.14.

Several equities analysts have weighed in on EC shares. Zacks Research cut shares of Ecopetrol from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, June 22nd. UBS Group lifted their price objective on shares of Ecopetrol from $13.50 to $14.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 27th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Ecopetrol from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research report on Friday, May 29th. Citigroup cut shares of Ecopetrol from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $14.00 to $18.00 in a research report on Wednesday, June 3rd. Finally, HSBC upgraded shares of Ecopetrol to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 12th.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ecopetrol

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. ORG Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of Ecopetrol by 301.3% during the 4th quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 2,568 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 1,928 shares in the last quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Ecopetrol during the 2nd quarter valued at $25,000. Farther Finance Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Ecopetrol by 221.4% during the 4th quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 3,898 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $39,000 after acquiring an additional 2,685 shares in the last quarter. Advisory Services Network LLC purchased a new position in shares of Ecopetrol during the 3rd quarter valued at $40,000. Finally, Parallel Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Ecopetrol by 34.8% during the 1st quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 7,890 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $118,000 after acquiring an additional 2,038 shares in the last quarter.

Ecopetrol Trading Up 1.9%

Ecopetrol stock opened at $14.72 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93, a quick ratio of 1.30 and a current ratio of 1.55. The firm has a market cap of $30.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.50, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.76 and a beta of 0.46. Ecopetrol has a 1 year low of $8.27 and a 1 year high of $17.75. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $14.57 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $13.05.

Ecopetrol (NYSE:EC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, March 31st. The oil and gas company reported $0.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. Ecopetrol had a net margin of 8.84% and a return on equity of 12.38%. On average, research analysts predict that Ecopetrol will post 2.18 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ecopetrol Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed an annual dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 7th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 29th were given a dividend of $0.6612 per share. This represents a yield of 481.0%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, April 29th. Ecopetrol’s payout ratio is presently 50.78%.

Ecopetrol Company Profile

Ecopetrol SA (NYSE: EC) is Colombia’s state-controlled integrated oil and gas company and the country’s largest oil producer. The company’s operations span the upstream, midstream and downstream segments of the hydrocarbon value chain, including exploration and production of crude oil and natural gas, refining of petroleum products, transportation and storage via pipeline networks, and the marketing and sale of fuels and petrochemical feedstocks. Ecopetrol serves domestic demand in Colombia and maintains a portfolio of international investments and partnerships across the Americas.

In upstream activities, Ecopetrol focuses on exploration and development of onshore and offshore fields to sustain and grow hydrocarbon production.