Zacks Research Downgrades Ecopetrol (NYSE:EC) to Strong Sell

Ecopetrol (NYSE:EC) was downgraded by Zacks Research from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report issued on Tuesday,Zacks.com reports.

Several other research analysts have also recently weighed in on the stock. 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 lowered shares of Ecopetrol from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $14.00 to $18.00 in a report on Wednesday, June 3rd. Wall Street Zen cut Ecopetrol from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Sunday, July 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on Ecopetrol from $11.00 to $13.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, June 1st. Finally, UBS Group raised their price objective on Ecopetrol from $13.50 to $14.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 27th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Reduce” and a consensus target price of $13.14.

Ecopetrol Stock Up 0.2%

Shares of NYSE EC opened at $16.34 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.30, a current ratio of 1.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93. The company has a market cap of $33.58 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.76, a P/E/G ratio of 1.21 and a beta of 0.44. Ecopetrol has a 52 week low of $8.45 and a 52 week high of $17.75. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $15.69 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $14.18.

Ecopetrol (NYSE:EC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, March 31st. The oil and gas company reported $0.50 earnings per share for the quarter. Ecopetrol had a return on equity of 12.38% and a net margin of 8.84%. Research analysts anticipate that Ecopetrol will post 1.85 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ecopetrol

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Fundamenta Capital S.A. purchased a new stake in shares of Ecopetrol in the fourth quarter valued at $20,135,000. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership purchased a new position in Ecopetrol during the first quarter worth about $6,542,000. Jump Financial LLC lifted its position in Ecopetrol by 833.7% during the third quarter. Jump Financial LLC now owns 341,880 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $3,149,000 after buying an additional 305,266 shares during the period. Two Sigma Investments LP boosted its stake in Ecopetrol by 109.9% in the 3rd quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP now owns 466,266 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $4,294,000 after buying an additional 244,106 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Renaissance Technologies LLC acquired a new stake in Ecopetrol in the 1st quarter worth about $3,583,000.

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.