Swiss National Bank Sells 328,030 Shares of APA Corporation (NASDAQ:APA)

Key Points

• The Swiss National Bank reduced its holdings in APA Corporation by 31.4%, selling 328,030 shares and now owning 716,962 shares valued at approximately $15 million.
• Analyst price targets for APA stock have varied, with JPMorgan raising it from $19 to $20, while the consensus rating remains a "Hold" with an average target of $23.50.
• APA Corporation announced a quarterly dividend of $0.25 per share, yielding 4.9%, to be paid on August 22nd, which reflects a payout ratio of 33.44%.

Swiss National Bank decreased its position in shares of APA Corporation (NASDAQ:APA - Free Report) by 31.4% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 716,962 shares of the company's stock after selling 328,030 shares during the period. Swiss National Bank owned 0.20% of APA worth $15,071,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in APA. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its position in shares of 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 buying an additional 1,046,893 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its position in shares of APA by 33.1% during the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 6,186,244 shares of the company's stock valued at $142,823,000 after buying an additional 1,540,055 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC raised its position in shares of APA by 29.1% during the fourth quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 5,297,871 shares of the company's stock valued at $122,328,000 after buying an additional 1,195,212 shares during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp increased its position in APA by 7.2% in the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 4,025,421 shares of the company's stock worth $92,947,000 after purchasing an additional 269,865 shares during the last quarter. Finally, First Trust Advisors LP increased its position in APA by 32.2% in the fourth quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 2,166,968 shares of the company's stock worth $50,035,000 after purchasing an additional 528,159 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 83.01% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of APA from $19.00 to $20.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, July 11th. UBS Group restated a "neutral" rating and issued a $19.00 price target (up previously from $18.00) on shares of APA in a research report on Monday, July 14th. Piper Sandler boosted their price target on shares of APA from $19.00 to $21.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 17th. Raymond James Financial restated an "outperform" rating and issued a $26.00 price target (up previously from $25.00) on shares of APA in a research report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Finally, Mizuho reduced their price target on shares of APA from $20.00 to $19.00 and set an "underperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, May 13th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have assigned a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $23.50.

APA Stock Up 0.6%

Shares of APA opened at $20.56 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.36 billion, a P/E ratio of 6.88, a P/E/G ratio of 6.36 and a beta of 1.23. APA Corporation has a 12-month low of $13.58 and a 12-month high of $29.88. The company has a current ratio of 0.80, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $19.31 and a 200-day moving average price of $19.04.

APA (NASDAQ:APA - Get Free Report) last issued 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 firm had revenue of $2.18 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.03 billion. APA had a net margin of 10.53% and a return on equity of 20.98%. The business's revenue was down 14.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.17 earnings per share. Equities research analysts expect that APA Corporation will post 4.03 earnings per share for the current year.

APA Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 22nd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, July 22nd will be paid a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, July 22nd. APA's payout ratio is currently 33.44%.

APA 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.

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