Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. Has $7.74 Million Stock Holdings in APA Corporation (NASDAQ:APA)

Key Points

• Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management reduced its stake in APA Corporation by 45.3%, selling 304,836 shares, leaving them with 368,142 shares valued at approximately $7.74 million.
• Analysts have mixed views on APA Corporation; despite multiple recent price adjustments, it has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a price target of $23.59.
• APA Corporation reported earnings of $0.87 per share for the last quarter, exceeding analyst expectations, but its revenue declined by 14.4% year-over-year.

Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. cut its position in shares of APA Corporation (NASDAQ:APA - Free Report) by 45.3% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 368,142 shares of the company's stock after selling 304,836 shares during the quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. owned 0.10% of APA worth $7,738,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its position in shares of APA by 3,303.0% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 268,194 shares of the company's stock valued at $5,637,000 after purchasing an additional 260,313 shares during the period. Fifth Third Bancorp grew its holdings in shares of APA by 14.5% in the 1st quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 26,137 shares of the company's stock worth $549,000 after acquiring an additional 3,306 shares during the last quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC grew its holdings in shares of APA by 11.7% during the first quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 207,210 shares of the company's stock valued at $4,378,000 after buying an additional 21,630 shares in the last quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of APA by 34.2% during the first quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 269,512 shares of the company's stock valued at $5,665,000 after buying an additional 68,725 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Golden State Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of APA by 2,709.8% during the first quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,433 shares of the company's stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 1,382 shares in the last quarter. 83.01% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

APA has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Scotiabank restated a "sector perform" rating and issued a $22.00 target price (up previously from $14.00) on shares of APA in a research note on Friday, July 11th. Citigroup boosted their price objective on APA from $15.00 to $18.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, May 19th. Raymond James Financial reissued an "outperform" rating and set a $26.00 price objective (up previously from $25.00) on shares of APA in a research report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Stephens initiated coverage on APA in a research note on Tuesday, August 5th. They set an "equal weight" rating and a $24.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Roth Capital lowered APA from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $22.00 price target on the stock. in a research note on Wednesday. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have given a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $23.56.

APA Price Performance

Shares of APA stock traded down $0.07 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $20.49. The company had a trading volume of 6,147,391 shares, compared to its average volume of 8,105,128. APA Corporation has a 12 month low of $13.58 and a 12 month high of $29.88. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.33 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.85, a PEG ratio of 6.36 and a beta of 1.23. The firm's fifty day moving average is $19.31 and its 200 day moving average is $19.04. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a current ratio of 0.80.

APA (NASDAQ:APA - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The company reported $0.87 EPS for the quarter, topping 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%. APA's revenue for the quarter was down 14.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.17 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that APA Corporation will post 4.03 EPS for the current fiscal year.

APA Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 22nd. Investors of record on Tuesday, July 22nd will be given a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, July 22nd. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.9%. APA's dividend payout ratio is 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.