Ecopetrol (NYSE:EC) Stock Crosses Above Two Hundred Day Moving Average – Should You Sell?

Ecopetrol S.A. (NYSE:EC)’s stock price passed above its 200-day moving average during trading on Monday . The stock has a 200-day moving average of $11.06 and traded as high as $15.23. Ecopetrol shares last traded at $14.8950, with a volume of 1,948,918 shares trading hands.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have commented on EC shares. Bradesco Corretora set a $12.00 price objective on shares of Ecopetrol and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 4th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Ecopetrol from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 17th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Ecopetrol from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Sunday, March 22nd. Finally, HSBC upgraded shares of Ecopetrol to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, March 12th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and an average price target of $10.35.

Ecopetrol Price Performance

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’s 50 day moving average is $13.25 and its 200 day moving average is $11.13. The firm has a market capitalization of $29.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.85 and a beta of 0.49.

Ecopetrol (NYSE:EC) last released its quarterly earnings results on Saturday, February 14th. The oil and gas company reported $0.20 EPS for the quarter. Ecopetrol had a net margin of 7.64% and a return on equity of 10.89%. The business had revenue of $7.64 billion for the quarter. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Ecopetrol S.A. will post 1.8 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ecopetrol Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared an annual dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 7th. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 29th will be paid a $0.6612 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 29th. This represents a dividend yield of 436.0%. Ecopetrol’s dividend payout ratio is 126.89%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ecopetrol

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

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.