Arizona State Retirement System Increases Holdings in APA Co. (NASDAQ:APA)

Arizona State Retirement System grew its holdings in shares of APA Co. (NASDAQ:APA) by 1.0% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 107,417 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,071 shares during the quarter. Arizona State Retirement System’s holdings in APA were worth $2,480,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Van ECK Associates Corp increased its position in shares of APA by 0.6% during the 4th quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 77,110 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,780,000 after purchasing an additional 469 shares during the last quarter. Empirical Finance LLC increased its holdings in APA by 1.6% in the 3rd quarter. Empirical Finance LLC now owns 31,272 shares of the company’s stock worth $765,000 after acquiring an additional 497 shares during the last quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC increased its holdings in APA by 84.1% in the 3rd quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC now owns 1,182 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 540 shares during the last quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. increased its holdings in APA by 0.4% in the 4th quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 138,991 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,070,000 after acquiring an additional 544 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Huntington National Bank increased its holdings in APA by 48.8% in the 3rd quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 1,710 shares of the company’s stock worth $42,000 after acquiring an additional 561 shares during the last quarter. 83.01% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

APA Stock Performance

NASDAQ:APA opened at $19.02 on Tuesday. The business has a 50 day moving average of $22.60 and a 200 day moving average of $23.55. The company has a market capitalization of $6.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 2.69 and a beta of 3.26. APA Co. has a 1-year low of $17.66 and a 1-year high of $36.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03, a current ratio of 1.24 and a quick ratio of 1.24.

APA (NASDAQ:APA) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 26th. The company reported $0.79 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.97 by ($0.18). The firm had revenue of $2.50 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.31 billion. APA had a return on equity of 27.86% and a net margin of 24.36%. On average, sell-side analysts predict that APA Co. will post 4.03 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

APA Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 22nd. Investors of record on Tuesday, April 22nd will be given a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 22nd. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.26%. APA’s payout ratio is 44.25%.

Insider Buying and Selling at APA

In related news, Director Juliet S. Ellis acquired 4,391 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 12th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $22.78 per share, for a total transaction of $100,026.98. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 12,436 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $283,292.08. This trade represents a 54.58 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 1.30% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on APA shares. Royal Bank of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and issued a $32.00 price objective on shares of APA in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company lowered APA from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and decreased their price objective for the stock from $42.00 to $25.00 in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. UBS Group decreased their price objective on APA from $28.00 to $27.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Monday, December 9th. Citigroup reduced their target price on APA from $29.00 to $24.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, November 26th. Finally, Mizuho reduced their target price on APA from $25.00 to $24.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a report on Monday, December 16th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have issued a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, APA presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $29.15.

APA 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.