Ecopetrol (NYSE:EC) Rating Increased to Hold at HSBC

HSBC upgraded shares of Ecopetrol (NYSE:EC) to a hold rating in a research report released on Thursday,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other research firms have also commented on EC. The Goldman Sachs Group restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $8.70 price objective on shares of Ecopetrol in a research report on Monday, December 1st. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Ecopetrol from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Ecopetrol from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 17th. Finally, Bradesco Corretora set a $12.00 price target on shares of Ecopetrol and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 4th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Reduce” and an average target price of $10.35.

Ecopetrol Stock Down 0.7%

Shares of NYSE EC opened at $13.86 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.30, a current ratio of 1.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.91. The company has a market cap of $28.48 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.64 and a beta of 0.64. Ecopetrol has a 52 week low of $7.80 and a 52 week high of $14.07. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $12.20 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $10.42.

Institutional Trading of Ecopetrol

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of EC. Larry Mathis Financial Planning LLC purchased a new position in shares of Ecopetrol during the fourth quarter worth about $131,000. XTX Topco Ltd raised its stake in Ecopetrol by 1,083.8% in the fourth quarter. XTX Topco Ltd now owns 127,910 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $1,282,000 after purchasing an additional 117,105 shares in the last quarter. Voloridge Investment Management LLC raised its stake in Ecopetrol by 91.4% in the fourth quarter. Voloridge Investment Management LLC now owns 236,586 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $2,371,000 after purchasing an additional 112,953 shares in the last quarter. Inspire Investing LLC bought a new stake in Ecopetrol during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $88,000. Finally, Engineers Gate Manager LP lifted its position in Ecopetrol by 43.9% during the fourth quarter. Engineers Gate Manager LP now owns 124,309 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $1,246,000 after purchasing an additional 37,943 shares during 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.