APA Co. (NASDAQ:APA) Short Interest Update

APA Co. (NASDAQ:APA - Get Free Report) was the target of a significant growth in short interest during the month of January. As of January 31st, there was short interest totalling 26,960,000 shares, a growth of 12.1% from the January 15th total of 24,040,000 shares. Currently, 7.5% of the shares of the company are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 6,900,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 3.9 days.

APA Trading Up 2.7 %

Shares of APA traded up $0.62 on Tuesday, hitting $23.76. 2,894,604 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 6,325,650. APA has a 1 year low of $20.32 and a 1 year high of $36.04. The firm has a market capitalization of $8.79 billion, a P/E ratio of 3.35 and a beta of 3.15. The stock's 50 day moving average is $22.86 and its two-hundred day moving average is $24.34. 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 Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced 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. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 22nd. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.21%. APA's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 14.12%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

APA has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Piper Sandler reduced their target price on APA from $26.00 to $23.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. Raymond James raised their price objective on shares of APA from $44.00 to $45.00 and gave the company a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Royal Bank of Canada reissued a "sector perform" rating and set a $32.00 price objective on shares of APA in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Mizuho dropped their target price on shares of APA from $25.00 to $24.00 and set an "underperform" rating for the company in a report on Monday, December 16th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their price target on APA from $25.00 to $22.00 and set a "sell" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 3rd. 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 given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $30.65.

Insiders Place Their Bets

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

Hedge Funds Weigh In On APA

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. ProShare Advisors LLC raised its stake in APA by 0.4% during the fourth quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 113,913 shares of the company's stock worth $2,630,000 after purchasing an additional 449 shares during the period. Van ECK Associates Corp raised its position in shares of APA by 0.6% in the 4th quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 77,110 shares of the company's stock worth $1,780,000 after buying an additional 469 shares during the period. Empirical Finance LLC raised its position in shares of APA by 1.6% in the 3rd quarter. Empirical Finance LLC now owns 31,272 shares of the company's stock worth $765,000 after buying an additional 497 shares during the period. Nissay Asset Management Corp Japan ADV raised its holdings in shares of APA by 1.1% in the 4th quarter. Nissay Asset Management Corp Japan ADV now owns 46,063 shares of the company's stock worth $1,018,000 after purchasing an additional 517 shares during the period. Finally, Segment Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in APA by 1.0% in the third quarter. Segment Wealth Management LLC now owns 54,367 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,330,000 after buying an additional 535 shares during the period. 83.01% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.