APA Co. (NASDAQ:APA) Shares Acquired by Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd

Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd boosted its stake in shares of APA Co. (NASDAQ:APA) by 3.5% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 35,854 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,210 shares during the period. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd’s holdings in APA were worth $828,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of APA. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC raised its position in shares of APA by 22.8% in 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. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in APA by 4.2% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 11,991,513 shares of the company’s stock worth $293,312,000 after acquiring an additional 485,291 shares during the last quarter. Baader Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised its holdings in shares of APA by 175.8% in the 4th quarter. Baader Bank Aktiengesellschaft now owns 23,500 shares of the company’s stock worth $543,000 after purchasing an additional 14,980 shares during the period. HITE Hedge Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of APA in the 3rd quarter valued at about $7,238,000. Finally, Victory Capital Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of APA by 13.5% during the 3rd quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,261,324 shares of the company’s stock worth $30,852,000 after purchasing an additional 149,762 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.01% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently commented on APA. Susquehanna cut their price target on shares of APA from $52.00 to $48.00 and set a “positive” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, October 18th. UBS Group reduced their target price on shares of APA from $28.00 to $27.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, December 9th. Royal Bank of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and issued a $32.00 price objective on shares of APA in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Bernstein Bank decreased their target price on APA from $30.00 to $28.00 in a research report on Friday, October 18th. Finally, Barclays dropped their target price on APA from $30.00 to $27.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, November 8th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have issued a hold rating, four have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $30.65.

APA Stock Up 1.4 %

Shares of APA stock opened at $23.31 on Wednesday. APA Co. has a twelve month low of $20.32 and a twelve month high of $36.04. The stock has a market capitalization of $8.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 3.29 and a beta of 3.15. The company has a current ratio of 1.24, a quick ratio of 1.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $22.79 and its 200-day simple moving average is $24.57.

APA Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 22nd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, April 22nd will be issued a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.29%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 22nd. APA’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 14.12%.

Insider Transactions at APA

In other APA news, Director Juliet S. Ellis acquired 4,391 shares of APA stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 12th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $22.78 per share, for a total transaction of $100,026.98. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 12,436 shares in the company, valued at approximately $283,292.08. This represents a 54.58 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 1.30% of the company’s stock.

APA 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.