Ecopetrol (NYSE:EC) Lowered to “Hold” Rating by StockNews.com

Ecopetrol (NYSE:EC) was downgraded by StockNews.com from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a note issued to investors on Monday.

A number of other equities research analysts have also recently weighed in on the company. Citigroup raised Ecopetrol from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $9.00 to $14.00 in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised Ecopetrol from an “underweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $7.50 to $9.50 in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $11.00.

Ecopetrol Stock Performance

Shares of EC traded up $0.24 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $10.37. 1,731,841 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,277,357. The firm has a market capitalization of $21.31 billion, a PE ratio of 4.96 and a beta of 1.22. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $9.46 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $8.72. Ecopetrol has a 1-year low of $7.21 and a 1-year high of $12.90. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.00, a quick ratio of 1.38 and a current ratio of 1.68.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Ecopetrol by 3.2% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 3,147,859 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $24,931,000 after buying an additional 96,909 shares in the last quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership acquired a new position in shares of Ecopetrol in the 4th quarter worth $13,760,000. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. raised its position in shares of Ecopetrol by 12.2% during the fourth quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 968,440 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $7,670,000 after purchasing an additional 105,637 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its holdings in shares of Ecopetrol by 22.9% during the fourth quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 850,753 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $6,738,000 after purchasing an additional 158,585 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of 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 valued at $5,516,000 after purchasing an additional 271,296 shares during the period.

About Ecopetrol

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.