Ecopetrol (NYSE:EC) Reaches New 52-Week Low – Time to Sell?

Ecopetrol S.A. (NYSE:EC)’s stock price reached a new 52-week low during trading on Monday . The stock traded as low as $7.28 and last traded at $7.34, with a volume of 273897 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $7.36.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

EC has been the topic of several recent research reports. StockNews.com raised shares of Ecopetrol from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, November 8th. The Goldman Sachs Group cut their target price on Ecopetrol from $11.00 to $9.50 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, September 24th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on Ecopetrol from $8.50 to $7.50 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $8.50.

Ecopetrol Trading Down 0.5 %

The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $8.57 and a 200-day moving average price of $10.30. The company has a market capitalization of $15.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 3.29 and a beta of 1.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.00, a current ratio of 1.48 and a quick ratio of 1.21.

Ecopetrol (NYSE:EC) last announced its 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 business had revenue of $8.32 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $8.49 billion. Ecopetrol had a net margin of 13.92% and a return on equity of 9.42%. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Ecopetrol S.A. will post 2 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Trading of Ecopetrol

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in EC. Private Advisor Group LLC lifted its position in shares of 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 valued at $377,000 after buying an additional 4,996 shares during the last quarter. Anthracite Investment Company Inc. bought a new stake in Ecopetrol in the 1st quarter valued at about $1,302,000. GQG Partners LLC boosted its position in Ecopetrol by 0.9% during the first quarter. GQG Partners LLC now owns 12,291,956 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $145,537,000 after purchasing an additional 105,172 shares during the period. MQS Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Ecopetrol in the first quarter worth about $125,000. Finally, Earnest Partners LLC raised its position in shares of Ecopetrol by 1.2% in the first quarter. Earnest Partners LLC now owns 510,803 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $6,048,000 after purchasing an additional 5,844 shares during the period.

About Ecopetrol

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.