Morgan Stanley Reiterates “Underweight” Rating for APA (NASDAQ:APA)

Morgan Stanley reiterated their underweight rating on shares of APA (NASDAQ:APA) in a report released on Monday morning, Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a $28.00 price objective on the stock.

Several other brokerages also recently weighed in on APA. Piper Sandler decreased their price target on APA from $36.00 to $33.00 and set a neutral rating for the company in a report on Thursday, March 7th. Scotiabank reaffirmed a sector perform rating and set a $37.00 price target (down from $43.00) on shares of APA in a report on Tuesday, January 16th. Raymond James dropped their price target on APA from $44.00 to $43.00 and set a strong-buy rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 24th. Truist Financial dropped their price target on APA from $59.00 to $53.00 and set a buy rating for the company in a research report on Friday, April 5th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their price target on APA from $35.00 to $31.00 and set a sell rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, March 26th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of Hold and a consensus price target of $41.80.

APA Price Performance

APA stock opened at $33.16 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $10.01 billion, a P/E ratio of 3.57 and a beta of 3.27. APA has a twelve month low of $29.47 and a twelve month high of $46.15. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $32.21 and a 200-day simple moving average of $34.81. The company has a current ratio of 1.02, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41.

APA (NASDAQ:APA) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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 firm had revenue of $2.17 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.07 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.48 earnings per share. APA’s revenue was down 12.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that APA will post 4.6 EPS for the current year.

APA Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 22nd. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 22nd will be issued a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 19th. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.02%. APA’s dividend payout ratio is presently 10.78%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On APA

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. American National Bank increased its holdings in APA by 208.5% during the 1st quarter. American National Bank now owns 725 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 490 shares during the last quarter. Covestor Ltd increased its holdings in shares of APA by 117.8% in the 1st quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 808 shares of the company’s stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 437 shares during the last quarter. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of APA in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Quent Capital LLC increased its holdings in shares of APA by 64.0% in the 4th quarter. Quent Capital LLC now owns 961 shares of the company’s stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 375 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Rakuten Securities Inc. bought a new stake in shares of APA in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $34,000. 83.01% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.