Ecopetrol (NYSE:EC) Hits New 12-Month High – Still a Buy?

Ecopetrol S.A. (NYSE:EC) hit a new 52-week high during trading on Monday . The company traded as high as $17.46 and last traded at $17.5310, with a volume of 124750 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $16.58.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

EC has been the subject of several research reports. HSBC upgraded Ecopetrol to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of Ecopetrol from $11.00 to $13.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, June 1st. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Ecopetrol from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research report on Friday, May 29th. Citigroup lowered shares of Ecopetrol from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $14.00 to $18.00 in a research note on Wednesday, June 3rd. Finally, Zacks Research raised shares of Ecopetrol from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, April 20th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $13.14.

Ecopetrol Trading Down 0.7%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93, a current ratio of 1.55 and a quick ratio of 1.30. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $14.43 and its 200 day moving average price is $12.89. The stock has a market capitalization of $33.84 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.99, a P/E/G ratio of 0.78 and a beta of 0.46.

Ecopetrol (NYSE:EC) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, March 31st. The oil and gas company reported $0.50 EPS for the quarter. Ecopetrol had a net margin of 8.84% and a return on equity of 12.38%. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Ecopetrol S.A. will post 2.44 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ecopetrol Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared an annual dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 7th. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 29th were paid a $0.6612 dividend. This represents a yield of 481.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, April 29th. Ecopetrol’s dividend payout ratio is presently 73.86%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ecopetrol

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