Ecopetrol (NYSE:EC) Price Target Cut to $9.50

Ecopetrol (NYSE:EC) had its price objective dropped by analysts at The Goldman Sachs Group from $11.00 to $9.50 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Tuesday, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a “neutral” rating on the oil and gas company’s stock. The Goldman Sachs Group’s price objective would suggest a potential upside of 8.51% from the company’s current price.

EC has been the topic of several other research reports. StockNews.com lowered Ecopetrol from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 30th. Bank of America downgraded shares of Ecopetrol from a “neutral” rating to an “underperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 30th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and two have issued a hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Reduce” and a consensus price target of $8.83.

Ecopetrol Stock Down 6.1 %

Shares of NYSE:EC opened at $8.76 on Tuesday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $9.98 and a 200-day moving average of $11.06. Ecopetrol has a one year low of $8.67 and a one year high of $13.14. The stock has a market cap of $18.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 3.81 and a beta of 1.20. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.90, a current ratio of 1.58 and a quick ratio of 1.34.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ecopetrol

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Barings LLC bought a new stake in Ecopetrol in the second quarter valued at approximately $1,830,000. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Ecopetrol in the 2nd quarter valued at $1,890,000. Quantbot Technologies LP lifted its holdings in Ecopetrol by 66.6% during the 1st quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP now owns 74,194 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $878,000 after purchasing an additional 29,651 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its position in Ecopetrol by 58.2% during the second quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 6,402 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $72,000 after purchasing an additional 2,355 shares during the period. Finally, D.A. Davidson & CO. acquired a new position in shares of Ecopetrol in the fourth quarter valued at $356,000.

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.