Ecopetrol Sees Unusually High Options Volume (NYSE:EC)

Ecopetrol S.A. (NYSE:EC) was the target of unusually large options trading on Tuesday. Traders acquired 18,383 call options on the stock. This represents an increase of 353% compared to the average daily volume of 4,058 call options.

Ecopetrol Stock Performance

EC stock opened at $15.62 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.30, a current ratio of 1.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $14.35 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $12.80. Ecopetrol has a twelve month low of $8.27 and a twelve month high of $16.81. The firm has a market cap of $32.11 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.12, a PEG ratio of 0.74 and a beta of 0.46.

Ecopetrol (NYSE:EC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, March 31st. The oil and gas company reported $0.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. Ecopetrol had a return on equity of 12.39% and a net margin of 8.70%. Analysts predict that Ecopetrol will post 2.44 earnings per share for the current year.

Ecopetrol Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared an annual dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 7th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 29th were issued 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 (DPR) is currently 54.62%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have recently commented on EC shares. UBS Group increased their target price on Ecopetrol from $13.50 to $14.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 27th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Ecopetrol from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, May 23rd. Zacks Research upgraded Ecopetrol from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, April 20th. HSBC upgraded Ecopetrol to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, March 12th. Finally, Citigroup lowered Ecopetrol from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and increased their price target for the company from $14.00 to $18.00 in a report on Wednesday, June 3rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $13.14.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ecopetrol

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. CWA Asset Management Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Ecopetrol during the fourth quarter worth about $991,000. Brevan Howard Capital Management LP lifted its holdings in shares of Ecopetrol by 141.9% during the third quarter. Brevan Howard Capital Management LP now owns 362,904 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $3,342,000 after purchasing an additional 212,904 shares during the period. Fundamenta Capital S.A. acquired a new stake in shares of Ecopetrol during the fourth quarter worth about $20,135,000. Grantham Mayo Van Otterloo & Co. LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Ecopetrol during the third quarter worth about $398,000. Finally, Barometer Capital Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Ecopetrol by 77.9% during the third quarter. Barometer Capital Management Inc. now owns 77,200 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $711,000 after purchasing an additional 33,800 shares during the period.

Ecopetrol Company Profile

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.