Madison Asset Management LLC Makes New Investment in APA Corporation $APA

Madison Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in APA Corporation (NASDAQ:APA) during the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 328,600 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,703,000. Madison Asset Management LLC owned 0.09% of APA as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new position in shares of APA during the second quarter worth about $1,173,231,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its stake in APA by 6.9% during the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 16,376,952 shares of the company’s stock valued at $695,099,000 after acquiring an additional 1,055,016 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in APA by 2.0% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 14,710,034 shares of the company’s stock valued at $359,807,000 after acquiring an additional 285,542 shares during the last quarter. Morgan Stanley lifted its position in APA by 21.8% during the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 10,425,586 shares of the company’s stock worth $255,010,000 after acquiring an additional 1,864,900 shares during the period. Finally, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. lifted its position in APA by 76.9% during the 4th quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 7,171,963 shares of the company’s stock worth $175,426,000 after acquiring an additional 3,117,032 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.01% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have weighed in on the company. Mizuho upgraded APA to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Friday, July 31st. Truist Financial upped their price target on APA from $38.00 to $39.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, August 10th. Citigroup reaffirmed a “neutral” rating on shares of APA in a report on Tuesday, July 21st. Susquehanna lifted their price objective on shares of APA from $45.00 to $47.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 11th. Finally, Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on shares of APA from $44.00 to $41.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, June 26th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, sixteen have issued a Hold rating and four have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $41.50.

APA Price Performance

Shares of APA opened at $43.45 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 0.95, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $35.69 and its two-hundred day moving average is $35.61. APA Corporation has a twelve month low of $19.96 and a twelve month high of $45.66. The firm has a market capitalization of $15.22 billion, a PE ratio of 9.19 and a beta of 0.35.

APA (NASDAQ:APA) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The company reported $1.89 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.90 by ($0.01). The business had revenue of $2.37 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.46 billion. APA had a return on equity of 24.84% and a net margin of 19.48%.During the same period last year, the company posted $0.87 earnings per share. Research analysts anticipate that APA Corporation will post 5.25 earnings per share for the current year.

APA Company Profile

APA Corporation (NASDAQ: APA) is an independent exploration and production company engaged in the acquisition, development and production of oil and natural gas resources. The company operates through three core regions: the United States, Egypt and the North Sea. Through its integrated approach, APA combines geological and geophysical expertise with technical innovation to identify and develop hydrocarbons in both onshore and offshore settings.

In the United States, APA’s largest position is in the Permian Basin of West Texas and southeastern New Mexico, where it holds substantial acreage dedicated to oil-focused drilling and production.