APA Co. (NASDAQ:APA) Plans Quarterly Dividend of $0.25

APA Co. (NASDAQ:APA) announced a quarterly dividend on Wednesday, December 11th,RTT News reports. Investors of record on Wednesday, January 22nd will be given a dividend of 0.25 per share on Friday, February 21st. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.47%.

APA has raised its dividend payment by an average of 45.5% annually over the last three years. APA has a dividend payout ratio of 27.7% meaning its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Equities research analysts expect APA to earn $3.37 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $1.00 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 29.7%.

APA Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ APA traded up $0.12 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $22.38. 7,053,327 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 6,281,144. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03, a current ratio of 1.24 and a quick ratio of 1.24. APA has a 1 year low of $20.95 and a 1 year high of $37.82. The company has a market cap of $8.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 3.14 and a beta of 3.19. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $23.73 and its 200 day moving average price is $26.70.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Truist Financial lowered their price target on APA from $36.00 to $33.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, November 8th. Citigroup dropped their price target on APA from $29.00 to $24.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, November 26th. Barclays decreased their price objective on shares of APA from $30.00 to $27.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, November 8th. Evercore ISI cut their target price on shares of APA from $39.00 to $33.00 and set an “in-line” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, September 30th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on shares of APA from $29.00 to $25.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, November 13th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have assigned a hold rating, five have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, APA presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $32.52.

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.