APA (NASDAQ:APA) Coverage Initiated by Analysts at Wells Fargo & Company

Wells Fargo & Company initiated coverage on shares of APA (NASDAQ:APA) in a research report released on Wednesday morning, MarketBeat Ratings reports. The firm issued an overweight rating and a $55.00 target price on the stock.

A number of other research firms have also weighed in on APA. Scotiabank reissued a sector perform rating and issued a $37.00 target price (down from $43.00) on shares of APA in a report on Tuesday, January 16th. Susquehanna raised their target price on shares of APA from $50.00 to $54.00 and gave the company a positive rating in a report on Monday, April 22nd. Roth Mkm lifted their price objective on shares of APA from $37.00 to $39.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 2nd. Raymond James dropped their price objective on shares of APA from $44.00 to $43.00 and set a strong-buy rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 24th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an underweight rating and set a $28.00 price objective on shares of APA in a research note on Monday, April 15th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, APA presently has an average rating of Hold and a consensus target price of $42.25.

APA Trading Up 0.4 %

APA stock opened at $32.49 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $9.78 billion, a P/E ratio of 3.50 and a beta of 3.27. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41, a current ratio of 1.02 and a quick ratio of 1.02. APA has a 1 year low of $29.47 and a 1 year high of $46.15. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $32.55 and its 200-day moving average price is $34.42.

APA (NASDAQ:APA) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 22nd. The company reported $1.15 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.33 by ($0.18). The company had revenue of $2.17 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.07 billion. APA had a net margin of 34.95% and a return on equity of 62.64%. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 12.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.48 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that APA will post 5.03 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

APA Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 22nd. Investors of record on Monday, April 22nd will be issued a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 19th. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.08%. APA’s payout ratio is currently 10.78%.

Institutional Trading of APA

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. American National Bank raised its holdings in APA by 208.5% in the first quarter. American National Bank now owns 725 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 490 shares in the last quarter. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC bought a new position in APA in the third quarter worth about $34,000. Quent Capital LLC raised its holdings in APA by 64.0% in the fourth quarter. Quent Capital LLC now owns 961 shares of the company’s stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 375 shares in the last quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. bought a new position in APA in the fourth quarter worth about $34,000. Finally, Principal Securities Inc. bought a new position in APA in the fourth quarter worth about $39,000. 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.