Renaissance Technologies LLC Invests $4.04 Million in APA Co. (NASDAQ:APA)

Renaissance Technologies LLC purchased a new position in shares of APA Co. (NASDAQ:APA - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 175,077 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,043,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in APA. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. raised its stake in APA by 1,087.9% in the 4th quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. now owns 1,176 shares of the company's stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 1,077 shares during the last quarter. Riverview Trust Co raised its stake in shares of APA by 5,718.2% in the fourth quarter. Riverview Trust Co now owns 1,280 shares of the company's stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 1,258 shares during the last quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB raised its stake in shares of APA by 77.9% in the fourth quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 1,338 shares of the company's stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 586 shares during the last quarter. Runnymede Capital Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of APA during the fourth quarter worth about $35,000. Finally, MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB boosted its position in APA by 93.5% in the fourth quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 1,614 shares of the company's stock valued at $37,000 after buying an additional 780 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.01% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have commented on the stock. Barclays decreased their price objective on shares of APA from $25.00 to $19.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on shares of APA from $23.00 to $20.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, March 13th. Raymond James downgraded APA from a "strong-buy" rating to an "outperform" rating and cut their price target for the stock from $45.00 to $32.00 in a research report on Monday, March 10th. Piper Sandler decreased their price objective on APA from $23.00 to $22.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on shares of APA from $25.00 to $23.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, March 26th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have issued a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $25.79.

APA Trading Up 3.9 %

Shares of NASDAQ:APA traded up $0.61 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $16.26. 6,877,557 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 6,848,246. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $18.99 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $21.75. APA Co. has a fifty-two week low of $13.58 and a fifty-two week high of $33.41. 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 stock has a market cap of $5.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 2.30 and a beta of 2.74.

APA (NASDAQ:APA - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 26th. The company reported $0.79 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.97 by ($0.18). The business had revenue of $2.50 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.31 billion. APA had a return on equity of 27.86% and a net margin of 24.36%. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that APA Co. will post 4.03 EPS for the current fiscal year.

APA Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 22nd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 22nd will be issued a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.15%. 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.