APA Co. (NASDAQ:APA) Short Interest Update

APA Co. (NASDAQ:APA) saw a large decrease in short interest in the month of December. As of December 31st, there was short interest totalling 22,260,000 shares, a decrease of 7.4% from the December 15th total of 24,050,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 6,270,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 3.6 days. Currently, 6.2% of the shares of the company are sold short.

APA Trading Down 3.0 %

Shares of APA traded down $0.75 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $24.40. The company had a trading volume of 9,418,721 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,425,373. APA has a 52-week low of $20.32 and a 52-week high of $36.04. The company has a quick ratio of 1.24, a current ratio of 1.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $22.62 and its 200 day moving average price is $25.52. The firm has a market cap of $9.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 3.45 and a beta of 3.16.

APA Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 21st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, January 22nd will be paid a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, January 22nd. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.10%. APA’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 14.12%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently commented on APA shares. Scotiabank decreased their target price on shares of APA from $30.00 to $27.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Wells Fargo & Company downgraded APA from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and lowered their price objective for the stock from $42.00 to $25.00 in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. Susquehanna reduced their target price on APA from $52.00 to $48.00 and set a “positive” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, October 18th. Barclays lowered their price target on APA from $30.00 to $27.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, November 8th. Finally, Citigroup cut their price objective on APA from $29.00 to $24.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, November 26th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have given a hold rating, four have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, APA presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $30.55.

Insider Transactions at APA

In related news, Director Juliet S. Ellis bought 4,391 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 12th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $22.78 per share, for a total transaction of $100,026.98. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 12,436 shares in the company, valued at approximately $283,292.08. The trade was a 54.58 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 1.30% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of APA

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of APA by 12.6% in the third quarter. Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC now owns 30,471,834 shares of the company’s stock worth $745,341,000 after purchasing an additional 3,411,270 shares during the last quarter. Harris Associates L P increased its stake in shares of APA by 20.8% during the third quarter. Harris Associates L P now owns 24,914,700 shares of the company’s stock valued at $609,414,000 after buying an additional 4,293,932 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of APA by 4.2% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 11,991,513 shares of the company’s stock valued at $293,312,000 after acquiring an additional 485,291 shares in the last quarter. Smead Capital Management Inc. lifted its stake in APA by 3.5% in the third quarter. Smead Capital Management Inc. now owns 9,667,452 shares of the company’s stock worth $236,466,000 after acquiring an additional 326,042 shares during the period. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in APA by 2.5% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 9,307,186 shares of the company’s stock valued at $226,928,000 after purchasing an additional 224,547 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.01% of the company’s stock.

APA Company Profile

APA Corporation, an independent energy company, explores for, develops, and produces natural gas, crude oil, and natural gas liquids. It has oil and gas operations in the United States, Egypt, and North Sea. The company also has exploration and appraisal activities in Suriname, as well as holds interests in projects located in Uruguay and internationally.