VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al Takes Position in APA Corporation $APA

Key Points

• Virginia Retirement Systems bought 163,500 shares of APA Corporation worth approximately $5.3 million in the second quarter. Institutional investors collectively own 83.01% of APA’s outstanding stock.
• APA shares rose 1.8% to $43.55, near the company’s 12-month high of $45.66. The company reported quarterly EPS of $1.89, slightly below estimates, while revenue of $2.37 billion also missed expectations.
• Analyst sentiment remains mixed, with a consensus “Hold” rating and an average price target of $42.07; estimates include nine Buy, 17 Hold, and four Sell ratings.

VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al bought a new stake in shares of APA Corporation (NASDAQ:APA - Free Report) in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 163,500 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,325,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Altshuler Shaham Ltd increased its stake in APA by 36.7% in the 1st quarter. Altshuler Shaham Ltd now owns 1,229 shares of the company's stock worth $52,000 after purchasing an additional 330 shares during the period. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. boosted its stake in shares of APA by 0.4% during the fourth quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. now owns 106,667 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,609,000 after purchasing an additional 375 shares during the period. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of APA by 1.4% in the fourth quarter. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. now owns 28,171 shares of the company's stock worth $689,000 after purchasing an additional 396 shares during the last quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC increased its stake in shares of APA by 37.9% in the second quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 1,489 shares of the company's stock worth $48,000 after buying an additional 409 shares during the period. Finally, IRON Financial LLC increased its stake in shares of APA by 7.2% in the second quarter. IRON Financial LLC now owns 7,279 shares of the company's stock worth $237,000 after buying an additional 490 shares during the period. 83.01% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

APA Stock Up 1.8%

Shares of APA stock opened at $43.55 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.95, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47. APA Corporation has a 12-month low of $21.57 and a 12-month high of $45.66. The company has a market cap of $15.26 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.21, a PEG ratio of 0.75 and a beta of 0.37. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $38.24 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $37.17.

APA (NASDAQ:APA - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The company reported $1.89 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.90 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $2.37 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.46 billion. APA had a return on equity of 24.84% and a net margin of 19.48%.During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.87 earnings per share. Research analysts anticipate that APA Corporation will post 5.7 EPS for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on APA shares. Stephens increased their price target on shares of APA from $43.00 to $47.00 in a research report on Wednesday, June 10th. Citigroup boosted their price objective on shares of APA from $38.00 to $44.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 20th. KeyCorp set a $46.00 target price on shares of APA in a report on Wednesday, August 12th. BMO Capital Markets cut their target price on APA from $47.00 to $45.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, May 13th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on APA from $44.00 to $41.00 and set an "underweight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, June 26th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seventeen have assigned a Hold rating and four have given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $42.07.

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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