APA Sees Unusually Large Options Volume (NASDAQ:APA)

APA Co. (NASDAQ:APA - Get Free Report) was the target of unusually large options trading activity on Monday. Stock traders acquired 41,917 put options on the stock. This represents an increase of 95% compared to the typical daily volume of 21,493 put options.

Institutional Trading of APA

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Sunpointe LLC grew its stake in shares of APA by 2.8% during the second quarter. Sunpointe LLC now owns 13,297 shares of the company's stock valued at $391,000 after buying an additional 362 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its holdings in APA by 12.0% during the 2nd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 3,558 shares of the company's stock valued at $105,000 after acquiring an additional 380 shares during the period. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI grew its position in APA by 6.7% during the 2nd quarter. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI now owns 6,860 shares of the company's stock worth $202,000 after acquiring an additional 429 shares during the last quarter. Inspire Investing LLC increased its stake in APA by 3.7% in the 1st quarter. Inspire Investing LLC now owns 12,932 shares of the company's stock worth $445,000 after purchasing an additional 457 shares during the period. Finally, Covestor Ltd lifted its position in APA by 75.4% in the first quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 1,093 shares of the company's stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 470 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.01% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on APA shares. Susquehanna reduced their target price on APA from $52.00 to $48.00 and set a "positive" rating for the company in a report on Friday, October 18th. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their target price on APA from $26.00 to $25.00 in a research report on Friday, October 18th. UBS Group cut their price target on shares of APA from $35.00 to $29.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, September 18th. Citigroup decreased their price target on shares of APA from $32.00 to $29.00 in a research note on Friday, October 18th. Finally, Bernstein Bank reduced their price objective on APA from $30.00 to $28.00 in a report on Friday, October 18th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have issued a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $33.50.

APA Price Performance

APA traded up $0.40 during trading on Monday, reaching $22.17. The stock had a trading volume of 8,348,495 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,808,183. The business has a 50-day moving average of $24.81 and a 200-day moving average of $27.92. APA has a one year low of $21.15 and a one year high of $38.27. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a current ratio of 1.34. The stock has a market cap of $8.20 billion, a PE ratio of 3.13 and a beta of 3.24.

APA Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 22nd. Investors of record on Tuesday, October 22nd will be issued a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, October 22nd. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.51%. APA's dividend payout ratio is 14.12%.

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.