Ecopetrol (NYSE:EC) Reaches New 12-Month Low – Time to Sell?

Shares of Ecopetrol S.A. (NYSE:EC) reached a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The company traded as low as $8.55 and last traded at $8.55, with a volume of 46854 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $8.69.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently issued reports on EC shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. downgraded shares of Ecopetrol from a “neutral” rating to an “underweight” rating and dropped their target price for the stock from $12.00 to $8.50 in a research report on Wednesday, September 25th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Ecopetrol from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 30th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their target price on shares of Ecopetrol from $11.00 to $9.50 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, September 24th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and two have assigned a hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and a consensus price target of $8.83.

Ecopetrol Stock Performance

The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $9.51 and its 200 day simple moving average is $10.86. The stock has a market cap of $17.41 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 3.78 and a beta of 1.20.

Ecopetrol (NYSE:EC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 14th. The oil and gas company reported $0.42 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.57 by ($0.15). The company had revenue of $8.32 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.49 billion. Ecopetrol had a net margin of 13.92% and a return on equity of 6.64%. As a group, analysts forecast that Ecopetrol S.A. will post 2.06 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Confluence Investment Management LLC bought a new position in Ecopetrol in the first quarter worth about $182,000. SeaCrest Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in Ecopetrol by 30.9% during the 1st quarter. SeaCrest Wealth Management LLC now owns 56,252 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $666,000 after purchasing an additional 13,293 shares during the period. Private Advisor Group LLC grew its stake in Ecopetrol by 18.6% during the 1st quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 31,872 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $377,000 after buying an additional 4,996 shares during the last quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP grew its stake in Ecopetrol by 66.6% during the 1st quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP now owns 74,194 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $878,000 after buying an additional 29,651 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Stokes Family Office LLC increased its position in Ecopetrol by 10.6% in the first quarter. Stokes Family Office LLC now owns 104,714 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $1,240,000 after buying an additional 10,000 shares during the period.

Ecopetrol Company Profile

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.