Fisher Asset Management LLC Boosts Holdings in APA Corporation $APA

Key Points

• Fisher Asset Management increased its APA stake by 5.2% in the fourth quarter, buying 75,532 more shares and bringing its holdings to 1,525,078 shares worth about $37.3 million.
• APA reported better-than-expected first-quarter earnings, with EPS of $1.38 topping estimates of $1.11 and revenue of $2.33 billion also beating forecasts. However, revenue was still down 11.7% year over year.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.25 per share payable on August 21, while analysts currently rate the stock a consensus Hold with an average target price of $40.81.

Fisher Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in APA Corporation (NASDAQ:APA - Free Report) by 5.2% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 1,525,078 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 75,532 shares during the quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC owned 0.43% of APA worth $37,303,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Hantz Financial Services Inc. raised its position in shares of APA by 84.0% in the 4th quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 7,649 shares of the company's stock worth $187,000 after purchasing an additional 3,491 shares during the last quarter. Wealthquest Corp increased its holdings in APA by 10.7% in the 4th quarter. Wealthquest Corp now owns 196,129 shares of the company's stock worth $4,797,000 after buying an additional 18,888 shares in the last quarter. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. increased its holdings in APA by 1.4% in the 4th quarter. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. now owns 28,171 shares of the company's stock worth $689,000 after buying an additional 396 shares in the last quarter. MQS Management LLC bought a new stake in APA in the 4th quarter worth about $439,000. Finally, Global Retirement Partners LLC increased its holdings in APA by 1,117.6% in the 4th quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 2,630 shares of the company's stock worth $64,000 after buying an additional 2,414 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.01% of the company's stock.

Insider Transactions at APA

In other news, VP Mark D. Maddox sold 9,800 shares of APA stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.04, for a total transaction of $392,392.00. Following the transaction, the vice president directly owned 66,810 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,675,072.40. The trade was a 12.79% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Matthew Regis Bob sold 23,000 shares of APA stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $36.23, for a total value of $833,290.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 6,634 shares in the company, valued at approximately $240,349.82. The trade was a 77.61% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 0.73% of the stock is owned by insiders.

APA Trading Down 3.4%

APA stock opened at $37.50 on Wednesday. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $39.03 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $30.90. The company has a market cap of $13.25 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.74 and a beta of 0.38. APA Corporation has a 52-week low of $16.75 and a 52-week high of $45.66. The company has a quick ratio of 0.92, a current ratio of 0.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58.

APA (NASDAQ:APA - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The company reported $1.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.11 by $0.27. APA had a return on equity of 20.70% and a net margin of 17.38%.The business had revenue of $2.33 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.13 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.06 EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was down 11.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts predict that APA Corporation will post 5.06 EPS for the current year.

APA Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 21st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, July 22nd will be given a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, July 22nd. APA's payout ratio is presently 23.31%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently commented on APA shares. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on APA from $21.00 to $39.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Thursday, April 9th. Evercore lifted their price objective on APA from $25.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, March 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on APA from $38.00 to $41.00 in a report on Friday, May 8th. Benchmark lifted their price objective on APA from $33.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, March 5th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price objective on APA from $26.00 to $36.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, April 13th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have given a Buy rating, seventeen have issued a Hold rating and four have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $40.81.

APA Company Profile

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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