JPMorgan Chase & Co. Purchases 158,585 Shares of Ecopetrol S.A. (NYSE:EC)

JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its holdings in Ecopetrol S.A. (NYSE:EC - Free Report) by 22.9% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 850,753 shares of the oil and gas company's stock after purchasing an additional 158,585 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co.'s holdings in Ecopetrol were worth $6,738,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in EC. Lindbrook Capital LLC boosted its position in Ecopetrol by 317.5% during the fourth quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 4,784 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $38,000 after purchasing an additional 3,638 shares during the period. Platinum Investment Management Ltd. bought a new position in Ecopetrol during the fourth quarter worth $44,000. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its position in Ecopetrol by 33.5% during the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 8,480 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $67,000 after purchasing an additional 2,128 shares during the period. SG Americas Securities LLC bought a new position in Ecopetrol during the fourth quarter worth $86,000. Finally, Signaturefd LLC boosted its position in Ecopetrol by 13.1% during the fourth quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 10,978 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $87,000 after purchasing an additional 1,271 shares during the period.

Ecopetrol Trading Up 0.3 %

NYSE EC traded up $0.03 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $9.07. 492,691 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,344,145. Ecopetrol S.A. has a one year low of $7.21 and a one year high of $12.67. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $9.73 and a 200-day simple moving average of $8.79. The stock has a market cap of $18.65 billion, a P/E ratio of 4.34 and a beta of 0.86. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.00, a current ratio of 1.68 and a quick ratio of 1.38.

Ecopetrol Cuts Dividend

The business also recently declared an annual dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 6th. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 28th will be paid a $0.5202 dividend. This represents a yield of 34.2%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 28th. Ecopetrol's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 79.90%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

EC has been the subject of a number of research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised Ecopetrol from an "underweight" rating to a "neutral" rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $7.50 to $9.50 in a report on Thursday, February 13th. StockNews.com downgraded Ecopetrol from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, March 17th. Finally, Citigroup raised Ecopetrol from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $9.00 to $14.00 in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Ecopetrol presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $11.00.

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.