APA (NASDAQ:APA) Price Target Raised to $45.00 at Stephens

APA (NASDAQ:APA) had its price target increased by Stephens from $24.00 to $45.00 in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday,MarketScreener reports. The brokerage currently has an “equal weight” rating on the stock. Stephens’ price target would suggest a potential upside of 7.60% from the company’s current price.

Other equities analysts also recently issued research reports about the company. Johnson Rice upgraded APA from a “hold” rating to an “accumulate” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $35.00 to $40.00 in a research report on Thursday, December 4th. UBS Group upped their price target on shares of APA from $30.00 to $34.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, March 2nd. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price objective on shares of APA from $29.00 to $30.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a research report on Monday, March 23rd. Scotiabank upgraded shares of APA to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of APA in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twenty have given a Hold rating and four have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $35.38.

APA Price Performance

Shares of APA stock traded down $1.92 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $41.82. 8,776,075 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 8,044,308. 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 firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $31.06 and a 200-day simple moving average of $26.68. APA has a 52 week low of $13.58 and a 52 week high of $45.66. The firm has a market cap of $14.77 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.47 and a beta of 0.67.

APA (NASDAQ:APA) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 25th. The company reported $0.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.62 by $0.29. The business had revenue of $1.99 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.89 billion. APA had a net margin of 15.55% and a return on equity of 19.89%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 26.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.79 EPS. Research analysts forecast that APA will post 4.03 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at APA

In other APA news, Director Matthew Regis Bob sold 23,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $36.23, for a total transaction of $833,290.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 6,634 shares in the company, valued at approximately $240,349.82. The trade was a 77.61% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 1.30% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On APA

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in APA. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. increased its stake in shares of APA by 6.6% in the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 33,300 shares of the company’s stock valued at $700,000 after acquiring an additional 2,070 shares during the last quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC grew its holdings in APA by 49.6% during the first quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 10,785 shares of the company’s stock valued at $227,000 after purchasing an additional 3,578 shares during the period. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its stake in APA by 43.3% in the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 2,668,505 shares of the company’s stock valued at $56,092,000 after purchasing an additional 806,252 shares in the last quarter. Focus Partners Wealth raised its holdings in APA by 10.6% in the first quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 44,833 shares of the company’s stock worth $942,000 after purchasing an additional 4,297 shares during the period. Finally, Cetera Investment Advisers boosted its position in shares of APA by 8.2% during the second quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 71,493 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,308,000 after purchasing an additional 5,439 shares in the last quarter. 83.01% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

APA News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting APA this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Citigroup raised its price target sharply from $25 to $45, signaling greater upside potential from current levels even though the firm kept a “neutral” rating. This target lift can support buying interest. Benzinga
• Positive Sentiment: Multiple bullish retail-facing write-ups and buy-case summaries (Yahoo, InsiderMonkey, MSN) are circulating, which can attract retail demand and short-term momentum traders. Is APA a Good Stock To Buy Now? (Yahoo) Is APA a Good Stock To Buy Now? (InsiderMonkey) Is APA a Good Stock to Buy Now? (MSN)
• Neutral Sentiment: Zacks Research nudged its FY2028 EPS estimate slightly higher (from $2.64 to $2.69) but retains a “Hold” rating — a modest fundamental tweak that is unlikely to move the stock materially on its own. Zacks / MarketBeat note
• Neutral Sentiment: Coverage includes articles referencing other organizations named “APA” (a solar manufacturer expansion and the American Planning Association’s trend report). Those unrelated stories can create noise in headlines but do not materially affect APA Corporation’s oil & gas fundamentals. APA Solar expands manufacturing campus Everything you Need to Know from the APA’s 2026 Trend Report
• Negative Sentiment: Major sell-side sentiment remains cautious—several analysts maintain “hold”/”neutral” ratings despite some target increases. That conservative institutional stance can cap upside and encourage short-term selling, especially after APA’s recent run toward its 52-week high. See Citigroup and Zacks notes above.

APA Company Profile

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.