Ecopetrol S.A. Plans — Dividend of $0.80 (NYSE:EC)

Ecopetrol S.A. (NYSE:EC) declared a — dividend on Thursday, March 28th, Wall Street Journal reports. Investors of record on Tuesday, June 25th will be paid a dividend of 0.7999 per share by the oil and gas company on Wednesday, July 3rd. This represents a dividend yield of 19.5%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, June 25th.

Ecopetrol has raised its dividend payment by an average of 19.4% annually over the last three years. Ecopetrol has a dividend payout ratio of 160.2% meaning the company cannot currently cover its dividend with earnings alone and is relying on its balance sheet to cover its dividend payments. Equities analysts expect Ecopetrol to earn $2.34 per share next year, which means the company may not be able to cover its $3.30 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 141.0%.

Ecopetrol Stock Performance

EC traded up $0.51 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $11.84. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 3,990,470 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,887,114. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.90, a current ratio of 1.47 and a quick ratio of 1.24. Ecopetrol has a 1 year low of $8.59 and a 1 year high of $13.14. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $11.48 and its 200-day moving average is $11.91.

Institutional Trading of Ecopetrol

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Penserra Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Ecopetrol during the first quarter worth $47,000. Sunbelt Securities Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Ecopetrol during the first quarter worth about $57,000. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC raised its holdings in Ecopetrol by 2,285.7% in the second quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 7,491 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $77,000 after acquiring an additional 7,177 shares in the last quarter. US Bancorp DE increased its stake in Ecopetrol by 250.3% in the fourth quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 8,011 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $95,000 after purchasing an additional 5,724 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada increased its stake in Ecopetrol by 165.8% in the second quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 10,208 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $104,000 after purchasing an additional 6,368 shares during the last quarter.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

EC has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their price objective on shares of Ecopetrol from $12.00 to $10.30 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, March 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on shares of Ecopetrol from $12.50 to $12.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, February 20th. Finally, Morgan Stanley downgraded shares of Ecopetrol from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and decreased their price target for the stock from $11.00 to $8.50 in a research report on Monday, March 4th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and five have issued a hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price 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.