Ecopetrol (NYSE:EC) Cut to Hold at StockNews.com

StockNews.com downgraded shares of Ecopetrol (NYSE:EC) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research report report published on Monday morning.

A number of other analysts also recently weighed in on the stock. Citigroup raised shares of Ecopetrol from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price target for the stock from $9.00 to $14.00 in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded Ecopetrol from an “underweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and upped their target price for the stock from $7.50 to $9.50 in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Ecopetrol presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $11.00.

Ecopetrol Stock Down 1.1 %

EC stock opened at $10.21 on Monday. Ecopetrol has a 52 week low of $7.21 and a 52 week high of $12.90. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $9.53 and a 200 day simple moving average of $8.74. The company has a quick ratio of 1.38, a current ratio of 1.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.00. The company has a market cap of $20.98 billion, a PE ratio of 4.88 and a beta of 1.22.

Ecopetrol Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a — dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 11th. Investors of record on Thursday, April 3rd will be paid a $0.5202 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 3rd. This is a positive change from Ecopetrol’s previous — dividend of $0.49. This represents a yield of 30%. Ecopetrol’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 91.87%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Ecopetrol by 81.0% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 425,116 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $3,796,000 after purchasing an additional 190,293 shares in the last quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets boosted its position in Ecopetrol by 61.9% during the 3rd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 56,783 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $507,000 after buying an additional 21,703 shares during the period. Verition Fund Management LLC bought a new stake in Ecopetrol during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $1,061,000. Hilltop Holdings Inc. bought a new stake in Ecopetrol during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $458,000. Finally, Tidal Investments LLC increased its position in Ecopetrol by 18.8% in the 3rd quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 39,301 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $351,000 after acquiring an additional 6,222 shares during the period.

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.