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

Shares of APA Co. (NASDAQ:APA) have been assigned an average rating of “Hold” from the twenty research firms that are covering the stock, MarketBeat.com reports. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have given a hold rating, four have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. The average 12-month price objective among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $31.14.

APA has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Susquehanna decreased their target price 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. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on APA from $29.00 to $25.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th. Bernstein Bank reduced their target price on APA from $30.00 to $28.00 in a research report on Friday, October 18th. Mizuho lowered their price target on APA from $25.00 to $24.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a report on Monday. Finally, Truist Financial reduced their price objective on shares of APA from $36.00 to $33.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, November 8th.

APA Trading Down 1.0 %

Shares of APA stock opened at $20.84 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.24, a quick ratio of 1.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03. APA has a twelve month low of $20.45 and a twelve month high of $37.82. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $23.19 and its 200-day moving average price is $26.40. The stock has a market cap of $7.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 2.94 and a beta of 3.18.

APA Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 21st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, January 22nd will be paid a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.80%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, January 22nd. APA’s payout ratio is presently 14.12%.

Insider Activity

In other APA news, Director Juliet S. Ellis purchased 4,391 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 12th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $22.78 per share, for a total transaction of $100,026.98. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 12,436 shares in the company, valued at approximately $283,292.08. This represents a 54.58 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Company insiders own 1.30% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. TD Private Client Wealth LLC grew its position in shares of APA by 84.1% in the 3rd quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC now owns 1,182 shares of the company’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 540 shares during the last quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. grew its holdings in shares of APA by 386.7% during the second quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. now owns 1,358 shares of the company’s stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 1,079 shares during the last quarter. Rothschild Investment LLC purchased a new position in shares of APA during the second quarter worth about $42,000. Huntington National Bank increased its position in shares of APA by 48.8% during the third quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 1,710 shares of the company’s stock worth $42,000 after purchasing an additional 561 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of APA by 164.2% in the 3rd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 2,581 shares of the company’s stock valued at $63,000 after purchasing an additional 1,604 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.01% of the company’s stock.

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.