APA Co. (NASDAQ:APA) Receives Average Recommendation of “Hold” from Analysts

APA Co. (NASDAQ:APA) has been given a consensus rating of “Hold” by the nineteen ratings firms that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat reports. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating, four have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. The average 1 year target price among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $30.65.

Several analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their price objective on shares of APA from $25.00 to $22.00 and set a “sell” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 3rd. Scotiabank dropped their price target on APA from $30.00 to $27.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Mizuho reduced their price objective on APA from $25.00 to $24.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, December 16th. Barclays lowered their target price on APA from $30.00 to $27.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, November 8th. Finally, Bernstein Bank reduced their price target on shares of APA from $30.00 to $28.00 in a research report on Friday, October 18th.

Insider Transactions at APA

In other news, Director Juliet S. Ellis purchased 4,391 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 12th. The stock was bought at an average price of $22.78 per share, with a total value of $100,026.98. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 12,436 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $283,292.08. This represents a 54.58 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 1.30% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Woodstock Corp raised its position in shares of APA by 20.3% during the third quarter. Woodstock Corp now owns 308,253 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,540,000 after purchasing an additional 51,993 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in APA by 4.2% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 11,991,513 shares of the company’s stock worth $293,312,000 after buying an additional 485,291 shares during the period. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC raised its holdings in APA by 22.8% during the 4th quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 65,071 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,503,000 after buying an additional 12,077 shares during the period. HITE Hedge Asset Management LLC bought a new position in APA in the third quarter valued at approximately $7,238,000. Finally, Baader Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted its holdings in shares of APA by 175.8% in the fourth quarter. Baader Bank Aktiengesellschaft now owns 23,500 shares of the company’s stock valued at $543,000 after buying an additional 14,980 shares during the period. 83.01% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

APA Stock Down 2.5 %

Shares of APA opened at $21.64 on Friday. APA has a 12 month low of $20.32 and a 12 month high of $36.04. The stock has a market cap of $8.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 3.06 and a beta of 3.15. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $22.78 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $24.84. The company has a quick ratio of 1.24, a current ratio of 1.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03.

APA Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 22nd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 22nd will be paid a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.62%. APA’s payout ratio is 14.12%.

About APA

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.