Prudential PLC purchased a new position in shares of APA Co. (NASDAQ:APA - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor purchased 30,119 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $695,000.
Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the business. Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its holdings in APA by 29.4% in the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 4,092,666 shares of the company's stock valued at $94,500,000 after purchasing an additional 929,770 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its position in APA by 7.5% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 12,886,087 shares of the company's stock valued at $297,540,000 after purchasing an additional 894,574 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in shares of APA in the 4th quarter valued at about $14,524,000. South Dakota Investment Council grew its position in shares of APA by 96.6% during the fourth quarter. South Dakota Investment Council now owns 774,245 shares of the company's stock worth $17,877,000 after buying an additional 380,510 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Madison Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of APA during the fourth quarter worth approximately $8,282,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.01% of the company's stock.
APA Stock Performance
APA stock traded up $0.44 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $15.04. 10,987,669 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 6,741,883. 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 stock has a market cap of $5.48 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 2.12 and a beta of 2.74. APA Co. has a 12-month low of $13.58 and a 12-month high of $33.88. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $20.09 and its 200 day simple moving average is $22.26.
APA (NASDAQ:APA - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 26th. The company reported $0.79 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.97 by ($0.18). The company had revenue of $2.50 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.31 billion. APA had a return on equity of 27.86% and a net margin of 24.36%. Equities research analysts predict that APA Co. will post 4.03 EPS for the current year.
APA Announces Dividend
The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 22nd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, April 22nd will be paid a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.65%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 22nd. APA's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 44.25%.
Wall Street Analyst Weigh In
A number of brokerages recently issued reports on APA. Morgan Stanley set a $22.00 price target on shares of APA and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 26th. Piper Sandler lowered their target price on shares of APA from $26.00 to $23.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on APA from $25.00 to $23.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, March 26th. Raymond James downgraded APA from a "strong-buy" rating to an "outperform" rating and decreased their price target for the stock from $45.00 to $32.00 in a report on Monday, March 10th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada dropped their price objective on APA from $27.00 to $24.00 and set a "sector perform" rating on the stock in a report on Friday. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have assigned a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $26.58.
Get Our Latest Research Report on APA
About APA
(
Free Report)
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.
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