Ecopetrol S.A. (NYSE:EC) Given Average Rating of “Reduce” by Analysts

Shares of Ecopetrol S.A. (NYSE:EC) have earned a consensus rating of “Reduce” from the five brokerages that are covering the company, Marketbeat.com reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation and four have issued a hold recommendation on the company. The average twelve-month target price among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $10.35.

Several research analysts recently commented on the stock. Bradesco Corretora set a $12.00 target price on shares of Ecopetrol and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 4th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Ecopetrol from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 17th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Ecopetrol from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $8.70 price objective on shares of Ecopetrol in a research report on Monday, December 1st. Finally, HSBC upgraded Ecopetrol to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday.

Ecopetrol Price Performance

Shares of Ecopetrol stock opened at $13.86 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.55, a quick ratio of 1.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.91. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $12.20 and a 200-day simple moving average of $10.42. The stock has a market capitalization of $28.48 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.64 and a beta of 0.64. Ecopetrol has a 1-year low of $7.80 and a 1-year high of $14.07.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ecopetrol

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of EC. ORG Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of Ecopetrol by 301.3% in the fourth quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 2,568 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 1,928 shares in the last quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in Ecopetrol during the second quarter worth $25,000. Farther Finance Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Ecopetrol by 221.4% in 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 buying an additional 2,685 shares during the period. Advisory Services Network LLC bought a new stake in Ecopetrol in the 3rd quarter valued at $40,000. Finally, Inspire Investing LLC acquired a new position in shares of Ecopetrol in the 4th quarter valued at $88,000.

About Ecopetrol

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.