APA (NASDAQ:APA) Upgraded to Buy at Wall Street Zen

Key Points

• Wall Street Zen upgraded APA from “Hold” to “Buy,” while broader analyst sentiment remains mixed: the stock has an average “Hold” rating and a consensus price target of $41.50.
• APA opened at $43.39, near its 52-week high of $45.66, with shares trading above their 50- and 200-day moving averages. The company reported quarterly EPS of $1.89 and revenue of $2.37 billion, slightly below analyst expectations.
• Institutional ownership stands at 83.01%, with major investors including BlackRock, Arrowstreet Capital, Goldman Sachs and AQR Capital Management increasing or initiating positions.

APA (NASDAQ:APA - Get Free Report) was upgraded by stock analysts at Wall Street Zen from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note issued to investors on Saturday.

Several other research firms have also recently weighed in on APA. KeyCorp set a $46.00 target price on shares of APA in a research note on Wednesday, August 12th. UBS Group decreased their price objective on shares of APA from $45.00 to $41.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, July 15th. Barclays lowered their price objective on shares of APA from $41.00 to $40.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, August 17th. Raymond James Financial dropped their target price on shares of APA from $57.00 to $50.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, July 13th. Finally, Susquehanna lifted their price target on APA from $45.00 to $47.00 and gave the stock a "positive" rating in a report on Tuesday, August 11th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, sixteen have issued a Hold rating and four have assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $41.50.

APA Price Performance

NASDAQ:APA opened at $43.39 on Friday. APA has a 52-week low of $20.71 and a 52-week high of $45.66. The company has a market cap of $15.20 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.17, a P/E/G ratio of 0.80 and a beta of 0.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a current ratio of 0.95. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $35.97 and its 200 day simple moving average is $35.79.

APA (NASDAQ:APA - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The company reported $1.89 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.90 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $2.37 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.46 billion. APA had a net margin of 19.48% and a return on equity of 24.84%. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.87 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that APA will post 5.54 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On APA

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of APA. BlackRock Inc. bought a new stake in APA in the 2nd quarter valued at $1,173,231,000. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership increased its position in APA by 1,726.2% during the 1st quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 4,834,502 shares of the company's stock worth $205,176,000 after buying an additional 4,569,779 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp bought a new position in APA during the 2nd quarter worth $134,558,000. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of APA by 76.9% during the fourth quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 7,171,963 shares of the company's stock worth $175,426,000 after buying an additional 3,117,032 shares in the last quarter. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of APA by 157.1% during the second quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 3,060,135 shares of the company's stock worth $55,970,000 after buying an additional 1,869,891 shares in the last quarter. 83.01% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Key Headlines Impacting APA

Here are the key news stories impacting APA this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Argus upgraded APA to Buy, providing a stronger analyst endorsement for the oil and gas producer and potentially supporting investor sentiment. APA Raised to Buy at Argus
• Positive Sentiment: Zacks Research raised multiple earnings forecasts: FY2026 EPS increased to $4.40 from $4.22, FY2027 to $3.16 from $2.99, FY2028 to $3.59 from $3.38, Q1 2027 to $0.94 from $0.84, Q3 2027 to $0.72 from $0.68, and Q4 2027 to $0.73 from $0.69. These revisions indicate improved expectations for APA’s medium-term earnings performance.
• Neutral Sentiment: Zacks maintained a Hold rating despite the higher estimates. The revisions remain below the consensus full-year estimate of $5.27 EPS for the current fiscal year, suggesting analysts see upside in longer-term forecasts but not enough evidence for a more decisive rating change. APA analyst estimates
• Negative Sentiment: Q1 2028 EPS expectations were reduced to $0.99 from $1.03, partially offsetting the broader upward revisions and highlighting uncertainty around future commodity prices, production levels, and operating costs.

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.

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