Millennium Management LLC Makes New Investment in Ecopetrol S.A. (NYSE:EC)

Millennium Management LLC 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 381,227 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,019,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. lifted its holdings in Ecopetrol by 12.2% in the fourth quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 968,440 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $7,670,000 after acquiring an additional 105,637 shares during the last quarter. FORA Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Ecopetrol in the fourth quarter valued at $105,000. Bridgefront Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of Ecopetrol in the 4th quarter valued at $291,000. Bayesian Capital Management LP purchased a new position in shares of Ecopetrol during the 4th quarter worth $203,000. Finally, BNP Paribas Financial Markets grew its holdings in shares of Ecopetrol by 220.8% during the 4th quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 182,166 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $1,443,000 after purchasing an additional 125,383 shares during the period.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have commented on the stock. Citigroup raised shares of Ecopetrol from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their target price for the company from $9.00 to $14.00 in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Ecopetrol from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, March 17th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of Ecopetrol from an “underweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $7.50 to $9.50 in a report on Thursday, February 13th.

Ecopetrol Stock Performance

Shares of Ecopetrol stock opened at $8.46 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $17.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 4.05 and a beta of 0.82. Ecopetrol S.A. has a 12 month low of $7.21 and a 12 month high of $12.67. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.00, a current ratio of 1.68 and a quick ratio of 1.38. The business has a 50-day moving average of $8.82 and a 200 day moving average of $8.87.

Ecopetrol Cuts Dividend

The business also recently disclosed an annual dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, May 6th. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 28th were paid a $0.5202 dividend. This represents a dividend yield of 34.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, April 28th. Ecopetrol’s payout ratio is currently 90.96%.

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.