Blowout Ecopetrol IPO Captivates Colombia

Colombia’s state-owned Ecopetrol has received orders for more than $3bn equivalent in pesos during the local round of its IPO, far surpassing estimates made in August by bankers and local brokers. Forecasts were for local demand to hit $1bn maximum. As of Tuesday afternoon, at least COP6trn worth of orders had been submitted, from 320,000 investors. At that level, the domestic issue would consume the minimum 10% of the $25bn company that was initially being offered. “People have sold other stocks to buy Ecopetrol,” Ricardo Duran, head of research at Corredores Associados, a local brokerage, tells LatinFinance. “The expectation is that Ecopetrol will find more oil in the future,” he adds. Vision de Valores, another local brokerage, has a year-end target of COP17,000 which represents a 20% rise over the COP14,000 offer price. Bancolombia is leading the operation, though shares are being sold at all of the major brokerages and even at supermarkets around the country. The book was set to close overnight.