First Trust Advisors LP Sells 79,282 Shares of Ecopetrol S.A. (NYSE:EC)

First Trust Advisors LP lessened its holdings in Ecopetrol S.A. (NYSE:EC - Free Report) by 12.4% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 558,405 shares of the oil and gas company's stock after selling 79,282 shares during the quarter. First Trust Advisors LP's holdings in Ecopetrol were worth $4,423,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in EC. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. bought a new stake in shares of Ecopetrol in the 4th quarter worth approximately $790,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Ecopetrol by 63.8% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 696,412 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $5,516,000 after acquiring an additional 271,296 shares in the last quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of Ecopetrol in the fourth quarter worth $2,060,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased 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 acquiring an additional 158,585 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Strategic Financial Concepts LLC purchased a new position in shares of Ecopetrol in the 4th quarter worth about $179,000.

Ecopetrol Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE EC traded down $0.29 during trading on Monday, reaching $7.87. 2,925,044 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,402,081. The company has a quick ratio of 1.38, a current ratio of 1.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.00. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $9.42 and a 200-day simple moving average of $8.79. Ecopetrol S.A. has a 52-week low of $7.21 and a 52-week high of $12.67. The stock has a market capitalization of $16.17 billion, a PE ratio of 3.76 and a beta of 0.86.

Ecopetrol Cuts Dividend

The company also recently announced an annual dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 6th. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 28th will be given a $0.5202 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, April 28th. This represents a yield of 34.2%. Ecopetrol's payout ratio is 72.73%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have weighed in on EC shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of Ecopetrol from an "underweight" rating to a "neutral" rating and raised their price objective for the company from $7.50 to $9.50 in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. StockNews.com lowered shares of 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 upped their price objective for the company from $9.00 to $14.00 in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Ecopetrol currently 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.