Sage Investment Counsel LLC Takes Position in Ecopetrol S.A. (NYSE:EC)

Sage Investment Counsel LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Ecopetrol S.A. (NYSE:EC) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 11,500 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock, valued at approximately $91,000.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in EC. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Ecopetrol by 81.0% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 425,116 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $3,796,000 after purchasing an additional 190,293 shares during the period. Verition Fund Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Ecopetrol during the third quarter valued at approximately $1,061,000. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. purchased a new stake in shares of Ecopetrol during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $790,000. Hilltop Holdings Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Ecopetrol during the third quarter valued at approximately $458,000. Finally, QRG Capital Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Ecopetrol during the third quarter valued at approximately $228,000.

Ecopetrol Stock Down 0.3 %

Shares of NYSE:EC opened at $9.89 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.68, a quick ratio of 1.38 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.00. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $9.04 and a 200 day simple moving average of $8.78. The firm has a market cap of $20.32 billion, a PE ratio of 4.73 and a beta of 1.20. Ecopetrol S.A. has a 12-month low of $7.21 and a 12-month high of $12.90.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on EC. Citigroup upgraded shares of Ecopetrol from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price objective for the company 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 lifted their price target for the stock from $7.50 to $9.50 in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $10.38.

Ecopetrol 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.