Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. Has $5.52 Million Stake in Ecopetrol S.A. (NYSE:EC)

Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in Ecopetrol S.A. (NYSE:EC) by 63.8% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 696,412 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after purchasing an additional 271,296 shares during the quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc.’s holdings in Ecopetrol were worth $5,516,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of EC. Fisher Asset Management LLC increased its position in Ecopetrol by 1.3% in the 4th quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 540,695 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $4,282,000 after buying an additional 7,009 shares during the period. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. acquired a new stake in shares of Ecopetrol in the 4th quarter valued at $2,060,000. Verition Fund Management LLC acquired a new position in Ecopetrol during the 3rd quarter valued at about $1,061,000. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. bought a new stake in shares of Ecopetrol during the 4th quarter valued at $790,000. Finally, Ping Capital Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Ecopetrol by 25.0% during the fourth quarter. Ping Capital Management Inc. now owns 60,000 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $475,000 after buying an additional 12,000 shares during the last quarter.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on EC shares. StockNews.com cut Ecopetrol from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, March 17th. Citigroup raised Ecopetrol from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price target for the company from $9.00 to $14.00 in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised shares of Ecopetrol from an “underweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $7.50 to $9.50 in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $11.00.

Ecopetrol Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:EC opened at $10.31 on Wednesday. Ecopetrol S.A. has a 12 month low of $7.21 and a 12 month high of $12.90. The stock has a market capitalization of $21.20 billion, a PE ratio of 4.93 and a beta of 1.22. The company has a current ratio of 1.68, a quick ratio of 1.38 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.00. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $9.66 and a 200-day moving average of $8.75.

Ecopetrol Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a — dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 11th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 3rd will be paid a $0.5202 dividend. This is a positive change from Ecopetrol’s previous — dividend of $0.49. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 3rd. This represents a dividend yield of 30%. Ecopetrol’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 91.87%.

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.