APA (NASDAQ:APA) Price Target Raised to $31.00

Key Points

• Goldman Sachs raised its price target on APA to $31.00 (from $30.00) but maintained a "sell" rating, implying about a 14% downside from the stock's prior close.
• Analyst sentiment is mixed: the consensus rating is "Hold" with an average price target of $39.12, based on 7 Buys, 20 Holds and 4 Sells.
• APA beat Q4 EPS expectations ($0.91 vs. $0.62) despite revenue falling 26.6% year-over-year; the stock trades near $36, with a market cap of $12.75B and a P/E of 9.02.

APA (NASDAQ:APA - Get Free Report) had its price target raised by equities researchers at The Goldman Sachs Group from $30.00 to $31.00 in a note issued to investors on Tuesday,MarketScreener reports. The brokerage presently has a "sell" rating on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group's target price would suggest a potential downside of 14.08% from the stock's previous close.

A number of other equities analysts have also recently issued reports on APA. Truist Financial raised their target price on shares of APA from $38.00 to $39.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a report on Monday. Scotiabank raised APA to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, March 27th. Benchmark upped their price target on shares of APA from $33.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, March 5th. Capital One Financial cut their price target on APA from $51.00 to $50.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday. Finally, Citigroup cut their target price on APA from $45.00 to $40.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twenty have assigned a Hold rating and four have given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $39.12.

APA Stock Performance

APA stock opened at $36.08 on Tuesday. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $35.03 and its 200 day simple moving average is $28.32. APA has a 12-month low of $15.20 and a 12-month high of $45.66. The firm has a market cap of $12.75 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.02 and a beta of 0.49. The company has a current ratio of 0.82, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61.

APA (NASDAQ:APA - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 25th. The company reported $0.91 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.62 by $0.29. The firm had revenue of $1.99 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.89 billion. APA had a net margin of 15.55% and a return on equity of 19.89%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down 26.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.79 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts predict that APA will post 4.31 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Matthew Regis Bob sold 23,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $36.23, for a total transaction of $833,290.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 6,634 shares in the company, valued at approximately $240,349.82. This trade represents a 77.61% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 1.30% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of APA by 76.9% in the 4th quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 7,171,963 shares of the company's stock valued at $175,426,000 after buying an additional 3,117,032 shares in the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in APA by 157.1% in the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 3,060,135 shares of the company's stock worth $55,970,000 after purchasing an additional 1,869,891 shares during the last quarter. Morgan Stanley raised its holdings in APA by 21.8% in the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 10,425,586 shares of the company's stock worth $255,010,000 after acquiring an additional 1,864,900 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its position in APA by 13.6% during the 3rd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 14,030,230 shares of the company's stock worth $340,657,000 after acquiring an additional 1,674,739 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Northern Trust Corp boosted its holdings in APA by 29.6% during the third quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 4,462,476 shares of the company's stock valued at $108,349,000 after acquiring an additional 1,018,326 shares during the period. 83.01% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About APA

APA Corporation NASDAQ: APA is an independent exploration and production company engaged in the acquisition, development and production of oil and natural gas resources. The company operates through three core regions: the United States, Egypt and the North Sea. Through its integrated approach, APA combines geological and geophysical expertise with technical innovation to identify and develop hydrocarbons in both onshore and offshore settings.

In the United States, APA's largest position is in the Permian Basin of West Texas and southeastern New Mexico, where it holds substantial acreage dedicated to oil-focused drilling and production.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.