5,602 Shares in Ecopetrol S.A. (NYSE:EC) Bought by Platinum Investment Management Ltd.

Platinum Investment Management Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of Ecopetrol S.A. (NYSE:EC) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund purchased 5,602 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock, valued at approximately $44,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of EC. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in Ecopetrol by 81.0% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 425,116 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $3,796,000 after buying an additional 190,293 shares during the period. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. acquired a new position in Ecopetrol in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $790,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. acquired a new position in Ecopetrol in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $2,060,000. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Ecopetrol in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $179,000. Finally, BNP Paribas Financial Markets boosted its holdings in shares of Ecopetrol by 61.9% in the third quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 56,783 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $507,000 after acquiring an additional 21,703 shares during the period.

Ecopetrol Price Performance

EC stock opened at $10.31 on Wednesday. Ecopetrol S.A. has a 52-week low of $7.21 and a 52-week high of $12.90. The company has a quick ratio of 1.38, a current ratio of 1.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.00. The company has a market capitalization of $21.19 billion, a PE ratio of 4.93 and a beta of 1.22. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $9.49 and its two-hundred day moving average is $8.73.

Ecopetrol Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a — dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 11th. Investors of record on Thursday, April 3rd will be given a dividend of $0.5202 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 3rd. This represents a yield of 30%. This is a positive change from Ecopetrol’s previous — dividend of $0.49. Ecopetrol’s payout ratio is currently 91.87%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

EC has been the subject of several recent research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised Ecopetrol from an “underweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $7.50 to $9.50 in a report on Thursday, February 13th. StockNews.com cut Ecopetrol from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday. Finally, Citigroup upgraded Ecopetrol from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price target for the company from $9.00 to $14.00 in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $11.00.

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.