Ecopetrol S.A. (NYSE:EC) Receives Consensus Recommendation of “Reduce” from Brokerages

Ecopetrol S.A. (NYSE:EC) has been given a consensus recommendation of “Reduce” by the five brokerages that are currently covering the stock, MarketBeat.com reports. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, two have assigned a hold recommendation and one has given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year price target among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $10.38.

EC has been the topic of several analyst reports. Citigroup upgraded shares of Ecopetrol from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $9.00 to $14.00 in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Ecopetrol from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 26th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of Ecopetrol from an “underweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $7.50 to $9.50 in a research note on Thursday, February 13th.

Ecopetrol Stock Performance

Shares of EC opened at $10.43 on Tuesday. The company’s fifty day moving average is $8.80 and its 200-day moving average is $8.78. Ecopetrol has a 12 month low of $7.21 and a 12 month high of $12.90. The firm has a market cap of $21.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 4.99 and a beta of 1.20. The company has a quick ratio of 1.38, a current ratio of 1.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.00.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of EC. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership acquired a new position in Ecopetrol in the 4th quarter valued at $13,760,000. Millennium Management LLC acquired a new stake in Ecopetrol in the 4th quarter worth $3,019,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its position in Ecopetrol by 63.8% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 696,412 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $5,516,000 after purchasing an additional 271,296 shares during the last quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. acquired a new stake in Ecopetrol in the 4th quarter worth $2,060,000. Finally, Marshall Wace LLP grew its position in Ecopetrol by 172.3% in the 4th quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 370,555 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $2,935,000 after purchasing an additional 234,459 shares during the last quarter.

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.