KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS Has $1.50 Million Stake in APA Corporation (NASDAQ:APA)

Key Points

• KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS sold 208,500 shares of APA Corporation, reducing its stake by 74.5%, leaving it with 71,500 shares worth approximately $1.5 million.
• APA Corporation has a current market cap of $6.91 billion and recently reported earnings of $1.06 per share, surpassing analyst expectations.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.25 per share, with a 5.24% dividend yield, payable on August 22nd.

KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS decreased its position in shares of APA Corporation (NASDAQ:APA - Free Report) by 74.5% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 71,500 shares of the company's stock after selling 208,500 shares during the quarter. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS's holdings in APA were worth $1,503,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. American Century Companies Inc. raised its position in shares of APA by 30.7% during the 4th quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 697,224 shares of the company's stock valued at $16,099,000 after acquiring an additional 163,608 shares during the last quarter. Sei Investments Co. raised its stake in APA by 121.5% during the 4th quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 295,596 shares of the company's stock worth $6,825,000 after buying an additional 162,149 shares during the period. LPL Financial LLC raised its stake in APA by 45.2% during the 4th quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 265,054 shares of the company's stock worth $6,120,000 after buying an additional 82,453 shares during the period. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp raised its stake in APA by 83.1% during the 4th quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp now owns 723,376 shares of the company's stock worth $16,703,000 after buying an additional 328,213 shares during the period. Finally, Korea Investment CORP raised its stake in APA by 68.3% during the 4th quarter. Korea Investment CORP now owns 346,943 shares of the company's stock worth $8,011,000 after buying an additional 140,800 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.01% of the company's stock.

APA Stock Performance

NASDAQ:APA traded down $0.20 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $19.48. The stock had a trading volume of 7,926,032 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,564,429. APA Corporation has a twelve month low of $13.58 and a twelve month high of $33.41. The stock has a market cap of $7.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.01, a PEG ratio of 6.43 and a beta of 1.25. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $18.90 and its 200 day simple moving average is $19.38. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.81, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a current ratio of 0.89.

APA (NASDAQ:APA - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, May 7th. The company reported $1.06 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.83 by $0.23. The business had revenue of $2.61 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.17 billion. APA had a net margin of 9.75% and a return on equity of 23.22%. APA's revenue was up 35.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.78 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that APA Corporation will post 4.03 earnings per share for the current year.

APA Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 22nd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, July 22nd will be given a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, July 22nd. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.13%. APA's payout ratio is 35.97%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently commented on the company. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $22.00 price objective on APA and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Monday, July 14th. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on APA from $20.00 to $21.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research note on Friday, May 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on APA from $21.00 to $20.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, July 18th. Susquehanna dropped their price objective on APA from $31.00 to $30.00 and set a "positive" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. Finally, Barclays raised their price objective on APA from $19.00 to $21.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Monday, July 7th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, APA presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $23.50.

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.