Scotiabank Issues Positive Forecast for APA (NASDAQ:APA) Stock Price

APA (NASDAQ:APA - Get Free Report) had its target price raised by analysts at Scotiabank from $14.00 to $22.00 in a research note issued to investors on Friday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a "sector perform" rating on the stock. Scotiabank's price target would suggest a potential upside of 7.24% from the company's current price.

Several other equities analysts have also recently commented on the stock. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on shares of APA from $20.00 to $21.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a report on Friday, May 23rd. Argus raised shares of APA to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, May 16th. Citigroup upped their price objective on shares of APA from $15.00 to $18.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, May 19th. Susquehanna decreased their price target on shares of APA from $31.00 to $30.00 and set a "positive" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. Finally, Mizuho reduced their price objective on shares of APA from $20.00 to $19.00 and set an "underperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, May 13th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have assigned a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, APA currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $25.28.

APA Price Performance

NASDAQ:APA traded up $0.12 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $20.52. 787,226 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 7,215,584. The firm's 50-day moving average is $18.29 and its 200-day moving average is $19.75. The stock has a market cap of $7.42 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.38, a P/E/G ratio of 6.60 and a beta of 1.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.81, a current ratio of 0.89 and a quick ratio of 0.89. APA has a 1-year low of $13.58 and a 1-year high of $33.41.

APA (NASDAQ:APA - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, May 7th. The company reported $1.06 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.83 by $0.23. APA had a net margin of 9.75% and a return on equity of 23.22%. The firm had revenue of $2.61 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.17 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.78 earnings per share. APA's revenue was up 35.1% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts expect that APA will post 4.03 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of APA

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its stake in shares of APA by 46.8% in the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 9,080,787 shares of the company's stock valued at $190,876,000 after purchasing an additional 2,894,543 shares during the last quarter. Freestone Grove Partners LP purchased a new position in shares of APA in the 4th quarter valued at $30,767,000. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC grew its stake in 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 buying an additional 1,195,212 shares during the last quarter. Nuveen LLC acquired a new stake in APA during the 1st quarter worth about $22,533,000. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of APA by 8.1% in the 1st 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 period. 83.01% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.

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