Ecopetrol (NYSE:EC) Stock Rating Upgraded by Wall Street Zen

Key Points

• Wall Street Zen upgraded Ecopetrol (NYSE:EC) from a "hold" to a "buy" rating in a note to investors on Saturday.
• Despite that upgrade, the broader analyst picture is still negative—MarketBeat shows a consensus rating of "Reduce" with a consensus target price of $10.35, and recent reports range from Goldman Sachs' "neutral" ($8.70) to Bradesco's "underperform" ($12).
• Shares opened at $13.86 (market cap ~$28.48 billion, PE 11.64), and several institutions such as XTX Topco and Voloridge increased their stakes in the fourth quarter, indicating recent institutional inflows.

Ecopetrol (NYSE:EC - Get Free Report) was upgraded by equities research analysts at Wall Street Zen from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a note issued to investors on Saturday.

A number of other brokerages have also recently weighed in on EC. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and issued a $8.70 price target on shares of Ecopetrol in a research report on Monday, December 1st. Weiss Ratings raised Ecopetrol from a "sell (d+)" rating to a "hold (c-)" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 17th. Finally, Bradesco Corretora set a $12.00 price objective on Ecopetrol and gave the company an "underperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 4th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Reduce" and a consensus target price of $10.35.

Ecopetrol Stock Down 0.7%

EC stock opened at $13.86 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $28.48 billion, a PE ratio of 11.64 and a beta of 0.64. Ecopetrol has a 1 year low of $7.80 and a 1 year high of $14.07. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $12.20 and a 200 day simple moving average of $10.42. The company has a current ratio of 1.55, a quick ratio of 1.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.91.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of EC. Larry Mathis Financial Planning LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Ecopetrol in the fourth quarter valued at about $131,000. XTX Topco Ltd lifted its position in shares of Ecopetrol by 1,083.8% during the 4th quarter. XTX Topco Ltd now owns 127,910 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $1,282,000 after purchasing an additional 117,105 shares during the last quarter. Voloridge Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in Ecopetrol by 91.4% during the 4th quarter. Voloridge Investment Management LLC now owns 236,586 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $2,371,000 after purchasing an additional 112,953 shares during the period. Inspire Investing LLC acquired a new stake in Ecopetrol in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $88,000. Finally, Engineers Gate Manager LP grew its holdings in Ecopetrol by 43.9% in the 4th quarter. Engineers Gate Manager LP now owns 124,309 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $1,246,000 after buying an additional 37,943 shares during the last quarter.

Ecopetrol Company Profile

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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