Ecopetrol (NYSE:EC) Sets New 52-Week Low – Here’s What Happened

Shares of Ecopetrol S.A. (NYSE:EC) reached a new 52-week low during trading on Monday . The company traded as low as $8.12 and last traded at $8.15, with a volume of 901894 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $8.23.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

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

Ecopetrol Price Performance

The stock’s 50 day moving average is $9.25 and its 200-day moving average is $10.68. The company has a market capitalization of $16.47 billion, a P/E ratio of 3.54 and a beta of 1.20.

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

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in EC. GQG Partners LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Ecopetrol by 0.9% during the 1st quarter. GQG Partners LLC now owns 12,291,956 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $145,537,000 after acquiring an additional 105,172 shares during the last quarter. Earnest Partners LLC lifted its holdings in Ecopetrol by 1.2% in the 1st quarter. Earnest Partners LLC now owns 510,803 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $6,048,000 after purchasing an additional 5,844 shares in the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Ecopetrol by 6.0% in the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 272,126 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $3,045,000 after buying an additional 15,467 shares in the last quarter. Capital Wealth Planning LLC boosted its stake in Ecopetrol by 7.0% during the second quarter. Capital Wealth Planning LLC now owns 222,706 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $2,492,000 after buying an additional 14,476 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Manning & Napier Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Ecopetrol in the second quarter valued at $1,890,000.

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.