Ecopetrol (NYSE:EC) Hits New 12-Month High - Should You Buy?

Key Points

• Ecopetrol shares reached a new 52-week high of $17.80 and were last trading at $17.64, up 0.4%, with the stock’s market capitalization at approximately $36.48 billion.
• Analyst sentiment remains cautious: six analysts rate the stock a Hold and two rate it Sell, producing a consensus “Reduce” rating and an average price target of $13.54—well below the current price.
• The company reported quarterly EPS of $0.86 on $11.72 billion in revenue, with an 8.84% net margin and 12.38% return on equity; several institutional investors also recently initiated or increased positions.

Shares of Ecopetrol S.A. (NYSE:EC - Get Free Report) reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $17.80 and last traded at $17.64, with a volume of 2176 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $17.67.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently commented on EC. Citigroup lowered Ecopetrol from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $14.00 to $18.00 in a research report on Wednesday, June 3rd. UBS Group lifted their price objective on shares of Ecopetrol from $14.00 to $16.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday. Zacks Research cut shares of Ecopetrol from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 4th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Ecopetrol from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Sunday, July 12th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised shares of Ecopetrol from a "hold (c-)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a report on Friday, May 29th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Reduce" and a consensus target price of $13.54.

Ecopetrol Trading Up 0.4%

The company has a current ratio of 1.55, a quick ratio of 1.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $15.97 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $14.44. The stock has a market cap of $36.48 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.85, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.27 and a beta of 0.44.

Ecopetrol (NYSE:EC - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, July 1st. The oil and gas company reported $0.86 EPS for the quarter. The company had revenue of $11.72 billion during the quarter. Ecopetrol had a return on equity of 12.38% and a net margin of 8.84%. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Ecopetrol S.A. will post 1.85 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ecopetrol

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio bought a new position in shares of Ecopetrol during the second quarter worth about $616,000. Ramsey Quantitative Systems bought a new stake in Ecopetrol in the second quarter valued at about $58,000. FNY Investment Advisers LLC acquired a new stake in Ecopetrol during the second quarter valued at approximately $168,000. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its stake in Ecopetrol by 8.3% during the second quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 35,037 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $499,000 after buying an additional 2,699 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Confluence Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in Ecopetrol by 15.1% during the 2nd quarter. Confluence Investment Management LLC now owns 15,465 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $220,000 after buying an additional 2,027 shares during the last quarter.

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.

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