MBB Public Markets I LLC Invests $322,000 in APA Corporation $APA

Key Points

• MBB Public Markets I LLC acquired 15,316 shares of APA Corporation, valued at approximately $322,000, during the first quarter of the year.
• Wall Street analysts maintain a consensus rating of "Hold" for APA, with a price target averaging $23.72, while some analysts project earnings of $4.03 per share for the current fiscal year.
• APA Corporation's latest quarterly earnings report showed a net margin of 10.53% and revenue of $2.18 billion, which was below the previous year's figures and the consensus estimate.

MBB Public Markets I LLC acquired a new position in APA Corporation (NASDAQ:APA - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 15,316 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $322,000.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of APA by 2.9% during the first quarter. Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC now owns 36,439,749 shares of the company's stock valued at $765,964,000 after buying an additional 1,029,961 shares during the last quarter. Harris Associates L P raised its stake in APA by 1.9% during the 1st quarter. Harris Associates L P now owns 25,708,527 shares of the company's stock valued at $540,393,000 after purchasing an additional 488,530 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in APA by 8.1% during the first quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 13,932,980 shares of the company's stock valued at $292,871,000 after acquiring an additional 1,046,893 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its holdings in shares of APA by 46.8% in the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 9,080,787 shares of the company's stock worth $190,876,000 after purchasing an additional 2,894,543 shares during the last quarter. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC raised its holdings in shares of APA by 29.1% during the 4th quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 5,297,871 shares of the company's stock worth $122,328,000 after acquiring an additional 1,195,212 shares in the last quarter. 83.01% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have commented on the company. Cowen reiterated a "hold" rating on shares of APA in a research note on Thursday, August 7th. Cfra Research upgraded APA to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, August 8th. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of APA from $22.00 to $23.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a report on Monday, August 18th. Raymond James Financial restated an "outperform" rating and issued a $28.00 price objective (up previously from $26.00) on shares of APA in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, Piper Sandler lifted their price target on APA from $21.00 to $22.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 14th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fourteen have issued a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $23.83.

APA Stock Down 0.6%

Shares of APA traded down $0.14 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $22.84. The company's stock had a trading volume of 4,928,242 shares, compared to its average volume of 7,894,545. APA Corporation has a 12-month low of $13.58 and a 12-month high of $27.48. The stock has a market cap of $8.17 billion, a PE ratio of 7.64, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.92 and a beta of 1.29. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a current ratio of 0.80 and a quick ratio of 0.80. The company's 50 day moving average is $20.49 and its 200 day moving average is $18.94.

APA (NASDAQ:APA - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The company reported $0.87 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.45 by $0.42. The business had revenue of $2.18 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.03 billion. APA had a return on equity of 20.98% and a net margin of 10.53%.The company's revenue for the quarter was down 14.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.17 earnings per share. Equities analysts anticipate that APA Corporation will post 4.03 EPS for the current fiscal year.

APA Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 21st. Investors of record on Wednesday, October 22nd will be issued a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, October 22nd. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.4%. APA's dividend payout ratio is currently 33.44%.

APA Company Profile

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.