APA Co. (NASDAQ:APA) Sees Large Decrease in Short Interest

APA Co. (NASDAQ:APA - Get Free Report) was the target of a large decline in short interest in the month of December. As of December 31st, there was short interest totalling 22,260,000 shares, a decline of 7.4% from the December 15th total of 24,050,000 shares. Currently, 6.2% of the shares of the company are short sold. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 6,270,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 3.6 days.

APA Trading Down 3.0 %

NASDAQ:APA traded down $0.75 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $24.40. 9,418,721 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,425,373. The stock has a market capitalization of $9.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 3.45 and a beta of 3.16. APA has a one year low of $20.32 and a one year high of $36.04. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $22.62 and a 200 day simple moving average of $25.52. 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 Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 21st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, January 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 4.10%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, January 22nd. APA's dividend payout ratio is presently 14.12%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have weighed in on APA. Wells Fargo & Company cut shares of APA from an "overweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and dropped their price objective for the stock from $42.00 to $25.00 in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. Citigroup reduced their target price on APA from $29.00 to $24.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, November 26th. UBS Group dropped their price target on APA from $28.00 to $27.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, December 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on shares of APA from $29.00 to $25.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. Finally, Bernstein Bank dropped their target price on shares of APA from $30.00 to $28.00 in a research report on Friday, October 18th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have issued a hold rating, four have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $30.55.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Juliet S. Ellis bought 4,391 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 12th. The stock was bought at an average price of $22.78 per share, with a total value of $100,026.98. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 12,436 shares of the company's stock, valued at $283,292.08. This represents a 54.58 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 1.30% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of APA by 12.6% in the 3rd quarter. Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC now owns 30,471,834 shares of the company's stock valued at $745,341,000 after purchasing an additional 3,411,270 shares during the period. Harris Associates L P lifted its stake in APA by 20.8% in the third quarter. Harris Associates L P now owns 24,914,700 shares of the company's stock valued at $609,414,000 after buying an additional 4,293,932 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of APA by 4.2% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 11,991,513 shares of the company's stock worth $293,312,000 after buying an additional 485,291 shares in the last quarter. Smead Capital Management Inc. grew its position in shares of APA by 3.5% during the 3rd quarter. Smead Capital Management Inc. now owns 9,667,452 shares of the company's stock worth $236,466,000 after buying an additional 326,042 shares during the period. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of APA by 2.5% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 9,307,186 shares of the company's stock valued at $226,928,000 after acquiring an additional 224,547 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.