Empirical Asset Management LLC Buys 30,697 Shares of APA Co. (NASDAQ:APA)

Empirical Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in APA Co. (NASDAQ:APA - Free Report) by 364.7% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 39,114 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 30,697 shares during the quarter. Empirical Asset Management LLC's holdings in APA were worth $903,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Woodstock Corp boosted its stake in shares of APA by 20.3% in the 3rd quarter. Woodstock Corp now owns 308,253 shares of the company's stock valued at $7,540,000 after purchasing an additional 51,993 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in APA by 4.2% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 11,991,513 shares of the company's stock valued at $293,312,000 after buying an additional 485,291 shares during the period. HITE Hedge Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in APA during the third quarter valued at $7,238,000. Victory Capital Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of APA by 13.5% in the 3rd quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,261,324 shares of the company's stock valued at $30,852,000 after purchasing an additional 149,762 shares during the period. Finally, PVG Asset Management Corp bought a new stake in shares of APA during the 3rd quarter valued at about $757,000. 83.01% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on APA from $29.00 to $25.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, November 13th. Citigroup lowered their price objective on shares of APA from $29.00 to $24.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, November 26th. Bernstein Bank cut their target price on APA from $30.00 to $28.00 in a research report on Friday, October 18th. Evercore ISI lowered their price target on 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, Wells Fargo & Company downgraded shares of APA from an "overweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and cut their price objective for the stock from $42.00 to $25.00 in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have assigned a hold rating, four have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $30.55.

Insider Activity at APA

In other APA news, Director Juliet S. Ellis purchased 4,391 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 12th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $22.78 per share, with a total value of $100,026.98. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 12,436 shares of the company's stock, valued at $283,292.08. The trade was a 54.58 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 1.30% of the stock is owned by insiders.

APA Price Performance

NASDAQ:APA traded down $0.75 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $24.40. The stock had a trading volume of 9,418,721 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,425,373. The firm has a market capitalization of $9.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 3.45 and a beta of 3.16. APA Co. has a one year low of $20.32 and a one year high of $36.04. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $22.62 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $25.52. 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 Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 21st. Investors of record on Wednesday, January 22nd will be given a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, January 22nd. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.10%. APA's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 14.12%.

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.