Ecopetrol (NYSE:EC) Hits New 52-Week High – What’s Next?

Ecopetrol S.A. (NYSE:EC) hit a new 52-week high on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $16.75 and last traded at $16.6410, with a volume of 674562 shares. The stock had previously closed at $15.88.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

EC has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Zacks Research upgraded Ecopetrol from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, April 20th. Citigroup lowered Ecopetrol from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and upped their target price for the stock from $14.00 to $18.00 in a research note on Wednesday, June 3rd. HSBC upgraded Ecopetrol to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 12th. Weiss Ratings upgraded Ecopetrol from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research note on Friday, May 29th. Finally, UBS Group upped their target price on Ecopetrol from $13.50 to $14.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 27th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Ecopetrol currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $13.14.

Ecopetrol Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93, a quick ratio of 1.30 and a current ratio of 1.55. The stock has a market capitalization of $33.42 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.66, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.76 and a beta of 0.46. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $14.27 and a 200 day moving average price of $12.62.

Ecopetrol (NYSE:EC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, March 31st. The oil and gas company reported $0.50 EPS for the quarter. Ecopetrol had a return on equity of 12.39% and a net margin of 8.70%. On average, analysts expect that Ecopetrol S.A. will post 2.44 EPS for the current year.

Ecopetrol Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed 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. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, April 29th. This represents a dividend yield of 481.0%. Ecopetrol’s dividend payout ratio is 54.62%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ecopetrol

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Ecopetrol during the 2nd quarter valued at about $25,000. ORG Partners LLC increased its position in shares of Ecopetrol by 301.3% during the 4th quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 2,568 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 1,928 shares during the last quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Ecopetrol by 221.4% during the 4th quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 3,898 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $39,000 after purchasing an additional 2,685 shares during the last quarter. Advisory Services Network LLC bought a new position in Ecopetrol during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $40,000. Finally, Inspire Investing LLC bought a new position in Ecopetrol during the 4th quarter worth approximately $88,000.

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.