Aberdeen Group plc Boosts Stock Holdings in APA Corporation $APA

Aberdeen Group plc grew its position in shares of APA Corporation (NASDAQ:APA) by 14.1% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 63,496 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 7,857 shares during the period. Aberdeen Group plc’s holdings in APA were worth $1,161,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its holdings in shares of APA by 61.9% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 12,759 shares of the company’s stock valued at $268,000 after acquiring an additional 4,878 shares during the last quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. purchased a new stake in APA in the first quarter worth $238,000. State of Alaska Department of Revenue lifted its holdings in APA by 2.8% during the 1st quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 43,353 shares of the company’s stock valued at $911,000 after buying an additional 1,175 shares in the last quarter. TrueMark Investments LLC bought a new stake in shares of APA during the first quarter valued at approximately $5,138,000. Finally, S.A. Mason LLC boosted its holdings in shares of APA by 17.3% in the first quarter. S.A. Mason LLC now owns 10,175 shares of the company’s stock valued at $214,000 after purchasing an additional 1,500 shares during the period. 83.01% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have commented on APA shares. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their target price on shares of APA from $23.00 to $24.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Monday, October 13th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised shares of APA from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, October 6th. Stephens assumed coverage on APA in a report on Tuesday, August 5th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $24.00 target price for the company. Scotiabank increased their target price on APA from $22.00 to $26.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 9th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on APA from $28.00 to $30.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Monday, October 13th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, sixteen have given a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $24.06.

APA Trading Down 2.1%

Shares of NASDAQ:APA opened at $22.52 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.80, a current ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62. APA Corporation has a 52-week low of $13.58 and a 52-week high of $25.83. The stock has a market cap of $8.06 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.53, a PEG ratio of 6.63 and a beta of 1.16. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $22.89 and a 200-day moving average price of $19.59.

APA (NASDAQ:APA) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The company reported $0.87 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.45 by $0.42. APA had a net margin of 10.53% and a return on equity of 20.98%. The company had revenue of $2.18 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.03 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.17 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was down 14.4% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts predict that APA Corporation will post 4.03 EPS for the current year.

APA Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 21st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, October 22nd will be paid a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, October 22nd. APA’s dividend payout ratio is presently 33.44%.

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.