Retirement Systems of Alabama Sells 86,779 Shares of APA Co. (NASDAQ:APA)

Retirement Systems of Alabama trimmed its position in APA Co. (NASDAQ:APA) by 13.3% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 564,898 shares of the company’s stock after selling 86,779 shares during the period. Retirement Systems of Alabama owned 0.18% of APA worth $20,269,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of APA during the third quarter valued at $34,000. Quent Capital LLC lifted its holdings in APA by 64.0% during the 4th quarter. Quent Capital LLC now owns 961 shares of the company’s stock worth $34,000 after buying an additional 375 shares during the period. Rakuten Securities Inc. bought a new stake in shares of APA in the 4th quarter valued at about $34,000. Tobam acquired a new stake in shares of APA in the fourth quarter valued at about $52,000. Finally, CVA Family Office LLC bought a new position in shares of APA during the fourth quarter worth about $56,000. Institutional investors own 83.01% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on APA shares. Raymond James lowered their target price 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. Barclays initiated coverage on APA in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $40.00 target price for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of APA from $38.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of APA from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 23rd. Finally, Piper Sandler lifted their price target on shares of APA from $33.00 to $35.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, April 19th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $42.25.

APA Stock Up 0.7 %

APA stock opened at $32.72 on Tuesday. APA Co. has a fifty-two week low of $29.47 and a fifty-two week high of $46.15. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $32.57 and a 200-day moving average of $34.35. The company has a market capitalization of $9.85 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 3.53 and a beta of 3.27. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a current ratio of 1.02.

APA (NASDAQ:APA) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 22nd. The company reported $1.15 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.33 by ($0.18). APA had a net margin of 34.95% and a return on equity of 62.64%. The company had revenue of $2.17 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.07 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.48 earnings per share. APA’s revenue for the quarter was down 12.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts predict that APA Co. will post 5.03 earnings per share for the current year.

APA Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 22nd. Investors of record on Monday, April 22nd will be given a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 19th. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.06%. APA’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 10.78%.

About APA

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.