Smead Capital Management Inc. Boosts Stake in APA Co. (NASDAQ:APA)

Smead Capital Management Inc. raised its position in APA Co. (NASDAQ:APA) by 3.5% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 9,667,452 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 326,042 shares during the period. APA makes up about 3.4% of Smead Capital Management Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 15th biggest holding. Smead Capital Management Inc. owned approximately 2.61% of APA worth $236,466,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of APA by 4.7% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 44,648,084 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,535,001,000 after purchasing an additional 2,004,555 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its stake in shares of APA by 131.7% in the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 4,813,655 shares of the company’s stock valued at $141,704,000 after purchasing an additional 2,736,041 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its stake in shares of APA by 15.7% in the 2nd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 3,358,192 shares of the company’s stock valued at $98,865,000 after purchasing an additional 455,312 shares in the last quarter. LSV Asset Management raised its stake in shares of APA by 4.9% in the 2nd quarter. LSV Asset Management now owns 2,757,900 shares of the company’s stock valued at $81,193,000 after purchasing an additional 129,841 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Kornitzer Capital Management Inc. KS raised its stake in shares of APA by 1.1% in the 2nd quarter. Kornitzer Capital Management Inc. KS now owns 1,451,439 shares of the company’s stock valued at $42,730,000 after purchasing an additional 16,287 shares in the last quarter. 83.01% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on APA shares. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their price objective on shares of APA from $26.00 to $25.00 in a research note on Friday, October 18th. Truist Financial dropped their price objective on shares of APA from $36.00 to $33.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, November 8th. Piper Sandler dropped their price objective on shares of APA from $28.00 to $26.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday. Mizuho dropped their price objective on shares of APA from $35.00 to $28.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, September 16th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on shares of APA from $49.00 to $47.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have given a hold rating, five have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $32.81.

APA Price Performance

Shares of APA stock opened at $22.46 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 1.24 and a current ratio of 1.24. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $24.46 and its 200-day simple moving average is $27.60. APA Co. has a twelve month low of $21.15 and a twelve month high of $37.82. The firm has a market cap of $8.31 billion, a P/E ratio of 3.17 and a beta of 3.24.

APA Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 22nd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, October 22nd will be paid a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.45%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, October 22nd. APA’s dividend payout ratio is presently 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.