Ecopetrol S.A. (NYSE:EC) Short Interest Up 9.1% in January

Ecopetrol S.A. (NYSE:EC) saw a significant growth in short interest in the month of January. As of January 31st, there was short interest totalling 15,720,000 shares, a growth of 9.1% from the January 15th total of 14,410,000 shares. Approximately 0.8% of the shares of the company are short sold. Based on an average trading volume of 2,600,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 6.0 days.

Ecopetrol Stock Up 0.3 %

Shares of EC stock traded up $0.04 during trading on Friday, reaching $10.26. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,596,581 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,814,962. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.00, a current ratio of 1.68 and a quick ratio of 1.38. The company has a market capitalization of $21.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 4.91 and a beta of 1.20. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $8.57 and its 200 day moving average price is $8.77. Ecopetrol has a 1-year low of $7.21 and a 1-year high of $12.90.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on EC. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised 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. StockNews.com cut Ecopetrol from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 26th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and three have given a hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $9.17.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Lindbrook Capital LLC raised its position in Ecopetrol by 317.5% in the 4th quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 4,784 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 3,638 shares during the last quarter. Platinum Investment Management Ltd. purchased a new position in Ecopetrol during the 4th quarter worth $44,000. Blue Trust Inc. raised its position in Ecopetrol by 135.5% during the 3rd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 6,352 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $57,000 after buying an additional 3,655 shares during the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC purchased a new position in Ecopetrol during the 4th quarter worth $86,000. Finally, Signaturefd LLC raised its position in Ecopetrol by 13.1% during the 4th quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 10,978 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $87,000 after buying an additional 1,271 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.