Swan Global Investments LLC Makes New Investment in APA Co. (NASDAQ:APA)

Swan Global Investments LLC purchased a new position in APA Co. (NASDAQ:APA) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm purchased 9,100 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $210,000.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC boosted its position in shares of APA by 22.8% in the fourth quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 65,071 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,503,000 after buying an additional 12,077 shares during the period. US Bancorp DE boosted its stake in shares of APA by 2.2% during the 4th quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 47,719 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,102,000 after acquiring an additional 1,010 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of APA by 4.2% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 11,991,513 shares of the company’s stock worth $293,312,000 after purchasing an additional 485,291 shares during the last quarter. Baader Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted its position in shares of APA by 175.8% during the 4th quarter. Baader Bank Aktiengesellschaft now owns 23,500 shares of the company’s stock worth $543,000 after purchasing an additional 14,980 shares during the last quarter. Finally, HITE Hedge Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in APA in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $7,238,000. Institutional investors own 83.01% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on APA. Mizuho dropped their target price on APA from $25.00 to $24.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a report on Monday, December 16th. Barclays reduced their price target on APA from $27.00 to $25.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, March 18th. Susquehanna dropped their price objective on APA from $33.00 to $31.00 and set a “positive” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, March 3rd. Raymond James downgraded APA from a “strong-buy” rating to an “outperform” rating and dropped their price target for the company from $45.00 to $32.00 in a research note on Monday, March 10th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and issued a $32.00 price target on shares of APA in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have given a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $28.60.

APA Price Performance

Shares of APA stock opened at $20.61 on Friday. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $21.97 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $23.06. The firm has a market cap of $7.50 billion, a PE ratio of 2.91 and a beta of 3.26. 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 Co. has a 12-month low of $17.66 and a 12-month high of $36.05.

APA (NASDAQ:APA) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 26th. The company reported $0.79 EPS 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 the consensus estimate of $2.31 billion. APA had a return on equity of 27.86% and a net margin of 24.36%. As a group, equities analysts expect that APA Co. will post 4.03 EPS for the current year.

APA Announces Dividend

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 given a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 22nd. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.85%. APA’s payout ratio is currently 44.25%.

APA 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.