Ecopetrol (NYSE:EC) Sets New 12-Month High at $12.64

Ecopetrol S.A. (NYSE:EC)’s share price hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $12.64 and last traded at $12.64, with a volume of 2077847 shares. The stock had previously closed at $12.49.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have recently commented on EC. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price target on shares of Ecopetrol from $12.50 to $13.90 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, August 18th. StockNews.com initiated coverage on Ecopetrol in a research note on Thursday, August 17th. They issued a “hold” rating for the company. Citigroup downgraded Ecopetrol from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $12.50 price objective for the company. in a report on Wednesday, September 13th. Finally, Bank of America assumed coverage on shares of Ecopetrol in a report on Wednesday, August 23rd. They set a “neutral” rating and a $11.50 price target on the stock. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, According to data from MarketBeat, Ecopetrol has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $12.58.

Ecopetrol Stock Performance

The business’s fifty day moving average is $11.41 and its 200-day moving average is $10.63. The company has a quick ratio of 1.00, a current ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.00. The company has a market cap of $26.03 billion, a PE ratio of 4.55 and a beta of 1.46.

Ecopetrol (NYSE:EC) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, August 8th. The oil and gas company reported $0.45 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.53 by ($0.08). Ecopetrol had a net margin of 16.74% and a return on equity of 10.34%. The company had revenue of $7.75 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.95 billion. As a group, research analysts predict that Ecopetrol S.A. will post 2.13 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of EC. BlackRock Inc. increased its holdings in Ecopetrol by 45.5% in the 2nd quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 7,161,233 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $73,403,000 after acquiring an additional 2,239,289 shares during the last quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership increased its stake in Ecopetrol by 395.4% in the fourth quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 3,388,012 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $35,472,000 after purchasing an additional 2,704,109 shares during the period. Marshall Wace LLP lifted its position in shares of Ecopetrol by 158.7% during the fourth quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 3,232,841 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $33,848,000 after purchasing an additional 1,983,223 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Ecopetrol by 5.5% during the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 2,984,353 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $26,650,000 after purchasing an additional 156,689 shares during the period. Finally, Millennium Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Ecopetrol by 215.8% in the fourth quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 2,381,687 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $24,936,000 after purchasing an additional 1,627,411 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 1.29% of the company’s stock.

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.