Ecopetrol (NYSE:EC) Downgraded by Zacks Research to “Hold”

Zacks Research cut shares of Ecopetrol (NYSE:EC) from a strong-buy rating to a hold rating in a research report released on Monday,Zacks.com reports.

Other equities research analysts have also issued research reports about the company. UBS Group lifted their price objective on Ecopetrol from $13.50 to $14.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 27th. Weiss Ratings raised Ecopetrol from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a report on Friday, May 29th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Ecopetrol from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, May 23rd. HSBC raised Ecopetrol to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, March 12th. Finally, Citigroup cut Ecopetrol from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $14.00 to $18.00 in a research report on Wednesday, June 3rd. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Ecopetrol currently has an average rating of “Reduce” and an average price target of $13.14.

Ecopetrol Stock Down 4.6%

Shares of Ecopetrol stock opened at $15.51 on Monday. The company has a market cap of $31.89 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.12, a PEG ratio of 0.86 and a beta of 0.46. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93, a quick ratio of 1.30 and a current ratio of 1.55. Ecopetrol has a one year low of $8.27 and a one year high of $17.75. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $14.51 and a two-hundred day moving average of $12.97.

Ecopetrol (NYSE:EC) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, March 31st. The oil and gas company reported $0.50 earnings per share for the quarter. Ecopetrol had a net margin of 8.84% and a return on equity of 12.38%. On average, analysts forecast that Ecopetrol will post 2.18 earnings per share for the current year.

Ecopetrol Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared an annual dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 7th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, April 29th were given a dividend of $0.6612 per share. This represents a dividend yield of 481.0%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, April 29th. Ecopetrol’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 73.86%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ecopetrol

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Fundamenta Capital S.A. purchased a new position in Ecopetrol in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $20,135,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its position in Ecopetrol by 3.0% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,407,890 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $14,107,000 after purchasing an additional 41,075 shares in the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. grew its holdings in Ecopetrol by 9.4% in the second quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 1,190,268 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $10,534,000 after purchasing an additional 102,505 shares during the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. grew its holdings in Ecopetrol by 7.4% in the fourth quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 935,639 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $9,375,000 after purchasing an additional 64,614 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Militia Capital Partners LP increased its position in shares of Ecopetrol by 16.1% in the second quarter. Militia Capital Partners LP now owns 556,200 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $4,922,000 after buying an additional 77,000 shares in 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.