Envestnet Asset Management Inc. Acquires 28,474 Shares of APA Corporation $APA

Key Points

• Envestnet Asset Management increased its APA stake by 8.5% in the second quarter, purchasing 28,474 shares for a total holding of 363,038 shares valued at approximately $11.8 million. Institutional investors and hedge funds collectively own 83.01% of APA.
• Analyst sentiment remains mixed, with a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $43.14. Recent targets range from $41 to $54, while APA shares recently traded at $43.34.
• APA authorized a 40 million-share repurchase program and declared a quarterly dividend of $0.25 per share, equivalent to a $1.00 annualized payout and a 2.3% yield.

Envestnet Asset Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of APA Corporation (NASDAQ:APA - Free Report) by 8.5% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 363,038 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 28,474 shares during the period. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. owned approximately 0.10% of APA worth $11,824,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Hollencrest Capital Management raised its stake in shares of APA by 520.8% during the 1st quarter. Hollencrest Capital Management now owns 596 shares of the company's stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 500 shares during the last quarter. Cedar Mountain Advisors LLC acquired a new position in APA in the first quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Compass Financial Management LLC acquired a new position in APA in the second quarter valued at approximately $33,000. MidFirst Bank acquired a new position in APA in the second quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Finally, Global Assets Advisory LLC purchased a new stake in APA in the 1st quarter worth approximately $44,000. 83.01% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

APA has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Raymond James Financial raised their price objective on shares of APA from $50.00 to $54.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 2nd. Benchmark boosted their target price on shares of APA from $40.00 to $46.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 12th. Mizuho raised shares of APA to a "strong sell" rating in a report on Friday, July 31st. UBS Group lifted their price objective on shares of APA from $41.00 to $47.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, September 14th. Finally, Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on shares of APA from $44.00 to $41.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, June 26th. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, sixteen have issued a Hold rating and four have given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $43.14.

APA Trading Up 4.3%

Shares of NASDAQ:APA opened at $43.34 on Friday. The business's 50 day moving average price is $41.56 and its 200-day moving average price is $38.72. APA Corporation has a 1 year low of $21.63 and a 1 year high of $47.44. The firm has a market capitalization of $15.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.16, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.72 and a beta of 0.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47, a current ratio of 0.95 and a quick ratio of 0.95.

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). APA had a return on equity of 24.84% and a net margin of 19.48%.The company had revenue of $2.37 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.46 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.87 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that APA Corporation will post 5.8 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

APA declared that its Board of Directors has approved a share repurchase plan on Wednesday, September 16th that permits the company to buyback 40,000,000 shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to buy shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are usually a sign that the company's board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

APA Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 23rd. Investors of record on Thursday, October 22nd will be paid a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, October 22nd. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.3%. APA's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 21.14%.

APA Profile

APA Corporation NASDAQ: APA is an independent energy company engaged in the exploration, development and production of oil, natural gas and natural gas liquids. The company's activities include identifying prospective resources, drilling and completing wells, and managing producing assets across multiple international markets.

APA's operations have historically been concentrated in the Permian Basin of the United States and in Egypt's Western Desert, where it participates in exploration and production activities through joint ventures.

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