Vanguard Group Inc. Sells 698,443 Shares of APA Corporation $APA

Key Points

• Vanguard Group sold 698,443 APA shares (a 1.6% reduction), leaving it with 43,327,998 shares—12.22% of the company—worth about $1.06 billion, and institutional investors now own 83.01% of APA.
• Equity analysts have an average rating of "Hold" with a mean price target of $39.50, though individual targets and opinions vary widely (from underperform/sell to outperform/strong buy).
• APA beat the quarter’s EPS estimates ($0.91 vs. $0.62) despite revenue falling 26.6% year‑over‑year to $1.99 billion, and the company declared a $0.25 quarterly dividend (annual $1.00, yield 2.5%; ex‑dividend Apr 22, payable May 22).

Vanguard Group Inc. reduced its stake in APA Corporation (NASDAQ:APA - Free Report) by 1.6% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 43,327,998 shares of the company's stock after selling 698,443 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. owned 12.22% of APA worth $1,059,803,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. United Capital Management of KS Inc. bought a new stake in APA during the 3rd quarter valued at $1,214,000. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC boosted its position in APA by 869.7% during the 3rd quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 194,418 shares of the company's stock valued at $4,872,000 after acquiring an additional 174,369 shares in the last quarter. Jackson Creek Investment Advisors LLC bought a new stake in APA during the 3rd quarter valued at $2,337,000. AE Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in APA by 2,049.4% during the 3rd quarter. AE Wealth Management LLC now owns 403,511 shares of the company's stock valued at $9,797,000 after acquiring an additional 384,738 shares in the last quarter. Finally, D.A. Davidson & CO. bought a new stake in APA during the 3rd quarter valued at $1,828,000. 83.01% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have issued reports on APA shares. Scotiabank increased their target price on APA from $26.00 to $36.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 22nd. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their target price on APA from $30.00 to $31.00 and gave the company a "sell" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 21st. Piper Sandler increased their target price on APA from $30.00 to $37.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, March 12th. Mizuho increased their target price on APA from $24.00 to $29.00 and gave the company an "underperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 17th. Finally, Wolfe Research increased their target price on APA from $45.00 to $47.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, April 6th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have assigned a Buy rating, nineteen have assigned a Hold rating and four have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $39.50.

APA Stock Down 1.5%

APA stock opened at $40.13 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61, a current ratio of 0.82 and a quick ratio of 0.82. The stock has a market capitalization of $14.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.06 and a beta of 0.49. APA Corporation has a 1-year low of $15.20 and a 1-year high of $45.66. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $36.77 and a 200-day moving average price of $29.07.

APA (NASDAQ:APA - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 25th. The company reported $0.91 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.62 by $0.29. The firm had revenue of $1.99 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.89 billion. APA had a return on equity of 19.89% and a net margin of 15.55%.The business's quarterly revenue was down 26.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.79 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that APA Corporation will post 4.83 EPS for the current fiscal year.

APA Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 22nd. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, April 22nd will be given a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 22nd. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.5%. APA's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 25.06%.

Insider Buying and Selling at APA

In other news, Director Matthew Regis Bob sold 23,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $36.23, for a total value of $833,290.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 6,634 shares of the company's stock, valued at $240,349.82. This trade represents a 77.61% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.73% of the stock is owned by insiders.

About APA

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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