Verity Asset Management Inc. Invests $286,000 in APA Co. (NASDAQ:APA)

Verity Asset Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of APA Co. (NASDAQ:APA - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm acquired 12,390 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $286,000.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in APA. Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in APA by 12.6% in the 3rd 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 period. Harris Associates L P lifted its holdings in 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 purchasing an additional 4,293,932 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in APA by 4.2% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 11,991,513 shares of the company's stock valued at $293,312,000 after buying an additional 485,291 shares in the last quarter. Smead Capital Management Inc. increased its position in shares of APA by 3.5% during the third quarter. Smead Capital Management Inc. now owns 9,667,452 shares of the company's stock valued at $236,466,000 after buying an additional 326,042 shares during the period. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC lifted 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 worth $226,928,000 after purchasing an additional 224,547 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 83.01% of the company's stock.

APA Trading Up 0.1 %

APA stock traded up $0.03 on Friday, reaching $21.67. The company's stock had a trading volume of 4,885,076 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,460,765. The firm has a market cap of $8.02 billion, a PE ratio of 3.06 and a beta of 3.15. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $22.76 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $24.77. APA Co. has a 12-month low of $20.32 and a 12-month high of $36.04. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 1.24 and a current ratio of 1.24.

APA Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 22nd. Investors of record on Tuesday, April 22nd will be paid a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.61%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 22nd. APA's payout ratio is currently 14.12%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on APA shares. Piper Sandler dropped their price objective on APA from $26.00 to $23.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. Citigroup decreased their price objective on shares of APA from $29.00 to $24.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, November 26th. Raymond James increased their price target on shares of APA from $44.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their price objective on shares of APA from $25.00 to $22.00 and set a "sell" rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 3rd. Finally, Mizuho lowered their price target on APA from $25.00 to $24.00 and set an "underperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, December 16th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have issued a hold rating, four have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $30.65.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Juliet S. Ellis bought 4,391 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 12th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $22.78 per share, with a total value of $100,026.98. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 12,436 shares in the company, valued at approximately $283,292.08. The trade was a 54.58 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 1.30% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.