APA (NASDAQ:APA) Issues Earnings Results

Key Points

• APA Corporation reported earnings of $0.87 EPS, exceeding the consensus estimate by $0.42 EPS, despite a 14.4% decline in revenue year-over-year, totaling $2.18 billion for the quarter.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.25, translating to a 5.0% annual yield and a payout ratio of approximately 35.97%.
• Following the earnings results, APA's stock rose by 2.4% and analysts have set new price targets ranging from $20.00 to $23.59, with an average rating of "Hold."

APA (NASDAQ:APA - Get Free Report) announced its earnings results on Wednesday. The company reported $0.87 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.45 by $0.42, Zacks reports. 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 analysts' expectations of $2.03 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.17 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was down 14.4% on a year-over-year basis.

APA Stock Up 2.8%

Shares of NASDAQ APA traded up $0.55 during trading on Friday, hitting $20.01. 11,134,808 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 7,093,744. The business's fifty day moving average is $19.16 and its 200 day moving average is $19.07. APA has a fifty-two week low of $13.58 and a fifty-two week high of $29.88. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.69, a P/E/G ratio of 6.54 and a beta of 1.23. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a current ratio of 0.80.

APA Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 22nd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, July 22nd will be issued a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, July 22nd. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.0%. APA's dividend payout ratio is currently 33.44%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On APA

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. NewEdge Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of APA by 49.6% during the first quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 10,785 shares of the company's stock worth $227,000 after acquiring an additional 3,578 shares in the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. increased its position in shares of APA by 6.6% during the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 33,300 shares of the company's stock worth $700,000 after acquiring an additional 2,070 shares in the last quarter. Focus Partners Wealth increased its position in shares of APA by 10.6% during the first quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 44,833 shares of the company's stock worth $942,000 after acquiring an additional 4,297 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its position in shares of APA by 43.3% during the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 2,668,505 shares of the company's stock worth $56,092,000 after acquiring an additional 806,252 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.01% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have recently commented on APA shares. Susquehanna lowered their target price on shares of APA from $31.00 to $30.00 and set a "positive" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on shares of APA from $21.00 to $20.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, July 18th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on shares of APA from $20.00 to $21.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research note on Friday, May 23rd. Royal Bank Of Canada cut their target price on shares of APA from $24.00 to $22.00 and set a "sector perform" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, July 14th. Finally, Barclays raised their target price on shares of APA from $21.00 to $22.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Friday. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have given a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, APA currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $23.59.

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.