Ameriprise Financial Inc. Has $4.53 Million Stake in APA Co. (NASDAQ:APA)

Ameriprise Financial Inc. trimmed its holdings in shares of APA Co. (NASDAQ:APA - Free Report) by 44.6% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 196,026 shares of the company's stock after selling 157,642 shares during the period. Ameriprise Financial Inc. owned about 0.05% of APA worth $4,526,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of APA. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. boosted its holdings in shares of APA by 1,087.9% in the 4th quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. now owns 1,176 shares of the company's stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 1,077 shares during the last quarter. Riverview Trust Co lifted its holdings in APA by 5,718.2% in the 4th quarter. Riverview Trust Co now owns 1,280 shares of the company's stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 1,258 shares in the last quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB lifted its holdings in APA by 77.9% in the 4th quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 1,338 shares of the company's stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 586 shares in the last quarter. Runnymede Capital Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in shares of APA in the 4th quarter worth about $35,000. Finally, Rothschild Investment LLC increased its position in shares of APA by 86.8% in the 4th quarter. Rothschild Investment LLC now owns 2,087 shares of the company's stock worth $48,000 after purchasing an additional 970 shares during the last quarter. 83.01% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

APA has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on shares of APA from $23.00 to $20.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, March 13th. Raymond James lowered shares of APA from a "strong-buy" rating to an "outperform" rating and reduced their price target for the stock from $45.00 to $32.00 in a research note on Monday, March 10th. Barclays cut their target price on shares of APA from $25.00 to $19.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. Scotiabank cut their price target on shares of APA from $26.00 to $14.00 and set a "sector perform" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, April 11th. Finally, Argus upgraded shares of APA to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, May 16th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have issued a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $25.58.

APA Stock Performance

APA stock traded down $0.13 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $17.18. The company had a trading volume of 4,639,366 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,998,799. The company has a quick ratio of 1.24, a current ratio of 1.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03. APA Co. has a 52 week low of $13.58 and a 52 week high of $33.41. The company has a 50 day moving average of $17.09 and a 200-day moving average of $20.41. The firm has a market cap of $6.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 2.43 and a beta of 1.18.

APA (NASDAQ:APA - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 7th. The company reported $1.06 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.83 by $0.23. The company had revenue of $2.61 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.17 billion. APA had a net margin of 24.36% and a return on equity of 27.86%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 35.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.78 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that APA Co. will post 4.03 EPS for the current fiscal year.

APA Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 22nd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, July 22nd will be issued a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.82%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, July 22nd. APA's payout ratio is 35.97%.

About APA

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.