APA (NASDAQ:APA) Reaches New 12-Month High on Analyst Upgrade

Key Points

• APA hit a new 52-week high of $33.81 after Capital One raised its price target to $32 and several other brokers boosted targets, fueling mid-day buying.
• Despite recent upgrades, the street split leans conservative—seven analysts rate Buy, seventeen Hold and four Sell—with a consensus Hold rating and an average price target of $29.63, below the current share price.
• Fundamentals show support: APA beat quarterly estimates with $0.91 EPS (vs. $0.62 expected) and $1.99B revenue, announced a $0.25 quarterly dividend (2.9% yield), and saw notable institutional buying including a large stake increase by Goldman Sachs.

APA Corporation (NASDAQ:APA - Get Free Report)'s stock price reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Thursday after Capital One Financial raised their price target on the stock from $31.00 to $32.00. Capital One Financial currently has an overweight rating on the stock. APA traded as high as $33.81 and last traded at $33.7850, with a volume of 1862394 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $32.97.

Several other brokerages have also recently commented on APA. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their price objective on shares of APA from $26.00 to $29.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Thursday, March 5th. UBS Group boosted their price target on shares of APA from $30.00 to $34.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, March 2nd. Evercore upped their price target on shares of APA from $21.00 to $25.00 in a report on Thursday, February 26th. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price objective on APA from $22.00 to $26.00 in a research report on Monday. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on APA from $25.00 to $29.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, February 27th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seventeen have assigned a Hold rating and four have given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, APA has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $29.63.

APA News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting APA this week:

• Positive Sentiment: RBC Capital raised its price target to $29 (from $26) and cited stronger oil prices and earnings momentum as support for the shares, giving additional upward pressure on sentiment. RBC Capital Raises APA Target
• Positive Sentiment: Capital One increased its price target to $32 and maintained an Overweight rating — another bullish broker move that supports upside expectations. Capital One target raise
• Positive Sentiment: Jefferies raised its price target (coverage note reported) and Wolfe Research published a bullish outlook forecasting strong price appreciation, adding to the constructive analyst tone around APA. Jefferies increases target Wolfe Research bullish note
• Positive Sentiment: A bullish deep-dive on Seeking Alpha argues APA remains undervalued while advancing operationally, which can attract value-oriented investors and support the rally. Seeking Alpha bullish piece
• Neutral Sentiment: Goldman Sachs raised its target to $29 from $23 but kept a Sell rating — the higher target narrows downside risk but the persistent sell call tempers the positive signal. Goldman Sachs update
• Neutral Sentiment: Reported short-interest figures for early March appear anomalous (showing zero/NaN) and are not providing a meaningful signal on squeeze risk or bearish positioning at this time.
• Negative Sentiment: Zacks Research trimmed near-term EPS estimates — lowering Q2 2026 and Q4 2026 EPS forecasts to $0.44 and $0.46 respectively and publishing a FY2028 EPS projection of $2.64 — and keeps a Hold rating. Lower near-term estimates add caution on near-term earnings momentum.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in APA. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. lifted its stake in shares of APA by 6.6% in the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 33,300 shares of the company's stock valued at $700,000 after acquiring an additional 2,070 shares during the last quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC grew its position in APA by 49.6% during the 1st quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 10,785 shares of the company's stock worth $227,000 after acquiring an additional 3,578 shares during the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its stake in APA by 43.3% in the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 2,668,505 shares of the company's stock worth $56,092,000 after purchasing an additional 806,252 shares during the period. Focus Partners Wealth lifted its position in APA by 10.6% in the first quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 44,833 shares of the company's stock valued at $942,000 after purchasing an additional 4,297 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of APA by 25.9% during the second quarter. Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 4,230 shares of the company's stock valued at $79,000 after purchasing an additional 871 shares during the period. 83.01% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

APA Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61, a current ratio of 0.82 and a quick ratio of 0.82. The stock has a market cap of $12.00 billion, a PE ratio of 8.50, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 16.50 and a beta of 0.67. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $27.51 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $25.20.

APA (NASDAQ:APA - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 25th. The company reported $0.91 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.62 by $0.29. The company 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 was down 26.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.79 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that APA Corporation will post 4.03 EPS for the current fiscal year.

APA Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 22nd. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, April 22nd will be issued a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.9%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 22nd. APA's dividend payout ratio is currently 25.06%.

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.

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