Synovus Financial Corp Purchases 90,580 Shares of APA Co. (NASDAQ:APA)

Synovus Financial Corp increased its stake in APA Co. (NASDAQ:APA - Free Report) by 292.9% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 121,505 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 90,580 shares during the period. Synovus Financial Corp's holdings in APA were worth $2,806,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Invesco Ltd. increased its position in shares of APA by 6.9% during the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 13,230,751 shares of the company's stock valued at $305,498,000 after purchasing an additional 850,052 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in APA by 7.5% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 12,886,087 shares of the company's stock worth $297,540,000 after buying an additional 894,574 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in APA by 2.2% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 9,507,956 shares of the company's stock valued at $219,016,000 after acquiring an additional 200,770 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its stake in shares of APA by 29.4% during the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 4,092,666 shares of the company's stock worth $94,500,000 after acquiring an additional 929,770 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Kornitzer Capital Management Inc. KS lifted its holdings in shares of APA by 6.1% in the 4th quarter. Kornitzer Capital Management Inc. KS now owns 1,532,360 shares of the company's stock worth $35,382,000 after acquiring an additional 88,656 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 83.01% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

APA has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Citigroup decreased their target price on shares of APA from $20.00 to $15.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday. Scotiabank decreased their price objective on APA from $26.00 to $14.00 and set a "sector perform" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, April 11th. Barclays dropped their target price on APA from $27.00 to $25.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, March 18th. Morgan Stanley set a $20.00 price target on APA and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 15th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on APA from $23.00 to $20.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, March 13th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have given a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $26.21.

APA Stock Up 4.9 %

Shares of APA stock traded up $0.75 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $16.12. 7,366,161 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 6,799,914. The company's 50-day moving average price is $19.41 and its 200-day moving average price is $21.92. The company has a market cap of $5.83 billion, a P/E ratio of 2.28 and a beta of 2.74. The company has a quick ratio of 1.24, a current ratio of 1.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03. APA Co. has a 12 month low of $13.58 and a 12 month high of $33.41.

APA (NASDAQ:APA - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 26th. The company reported $0.79 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.97 by ($0.18). APA had a return on equity of 27.86% and a net margin of 24.36%. The business had revenue of $2.50 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.31 billion. On average, equities analysts expect that APA Co. will post 4.03 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

APA Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 22nd. Investors of record on Tuesday, April 22nd will be given a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.20%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 22nd. APA's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 44.25%.

APA Company 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.