Prudential Financial Inc. Cuts Stake in APA Co. (NASDAQ:APA)

Prudential Financial Inc. reduced its stake in APA Co. (NASDAQ:APA - Free Report) by 19.6% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 198,470 shares of the company's stock after selling 48,287 shares during the quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. owned 0.05% of APA worth $4,583,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in APA. Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC increased its position in APA by 12.6% in the third quarter. Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC now owns 30,471,834 shares of the company's stock worth $745,341,000 after buying an additional 3,411,270 shares during the last quarter. Harris Associates L P grew its stake in shares of APA by 20.8% during the 3rd quarter. Harris Associates L P now owns 24,914,700 shares of the company's stock worth $609,414,000 after acquiring an additional 4,293,932 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings 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 worth $297,540,000 after acquiring an additional 894,574 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in 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 during the period. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC raised its stake in APA by 17.2% in the 3rd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 4,102,659 shares of the company's stock valued at $100,351,000 after acquiring an additional 600,612 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 83.01% of the company's stock.

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Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on APA shares. Piper Sandler reduced 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. Morgan Stanley set a $22.00 price objective on shares of APA and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 26th. Mizuho dropped their target price on APA from $25.00 to $24.00 and set an "underperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, December 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on APA from $23.00 to $20.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, March 13th. Finally, Citigroup decreased their price objective on APA from $24.00 to $20.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, March 17th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have given a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $27.68.

APA Price Performance

APA stock traded down $2.56 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $15.18. The company had a trading volume of 19,921,606 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,537,422. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $21.14 and a 200-day moving average price of $22.74. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03, a current ratio of 1.24 and a quick ratio of 1.24. The company has a market capitalization of $5.53 billion, a P/E ratio of 2.14 and a beta of 2.73. APA Co. has a 1 year low of $14.86 and a 1 year high of $36.05.

APA (NASDAQ:APA - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 26th. The company reported $0.79 earnings per share (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 company had revenue of $2.50 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.31 billion. On average, research analysts anticipate that APA Co. will post 4.03 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

APA Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 22nd. Stockholders 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 dividend yield of 6.59%. 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.