APA (NASDAQ:APA) Reaches New 52-Week Low – Time to Sell?

APA Co. (NASDAQ:APA) reached a new 52-week low during trading on Friday . The company traded as low as $20.09 and last traded at $20.42, with a volume of 18476400 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $22.01.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have commented on APA shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on shares of APA from $29.00 to $25.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, November 13th. Raymond James lifted their target price on APA from $44.00 to $45.00 and gave the company a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Truist Financial dropped their target price on APA from $36.00 to $33.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, November 8th. Piper Sandler decreased their price target on APA from $26.00 to $23.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. Finally, Barclays dropped their price objective on APA from $30.00 to $27.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, November 8th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have given a hold rating, four have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $30.65.

APA Stock Up 1.4 %

The company has a quick ratio of 1.24, a current ratio of 1.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03. The company has a market capitalization of $7.66 billion, a P/E ratio of 2.92 and a beta of 3.15. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $22.98 and a 200-day simple moving average of $24.01.

APA (NASDAQ:APA) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 26th. The company reported $0.79 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.97 by ($0.18). The company had revenue of $2.50 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.31 billion. APA had a return on equity of 27.86% and a net margin of 24.36%. On average, equities research analysts expect that APA Co. will post 4.03 EPS for the current fiscal year.

APA Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed 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 of this dividend is Tuesday, April 22nd. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.83%. APA’s dividend payout ratio is currently 44.25%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Juliet S. Ellis purchased 4,391 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 12th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $22.78 per share, for a total transaction of $100,026.98. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 12,436 shares in the company, valued at approximately $283,292.08. This trade represents a 54.58 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Company insiders own 1.30% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On APA

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. ProShare Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of APA by 0.4% during the 4th quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 113,913 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,630,000 after acquiring an additional 449 shares in the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp grew its position in APA by 0.6% in the fourth 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 in the last quarter. Empirical Finance LLC increased its stake in APA by 1.6% in the 3rd quarter. Empirical Finance LLC now owns 31,272 shares of the company’s stock valued at $765,000 after buying an additional 497 shares during the last quarter. Nissay Asset Management Corp Japan ADV lifted its position in APA by 1.1% during the 4th quarter. Nissay Asset Management Corp Japan ADV now owns 46,063 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,018,000 after buying an additional 517 shares in the last quarter. Finally, TD Private Client Wealth LLC boosted its stake in shares of APA by 84.1% during the 3rd quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC now owns 1,182 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 540 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.01% of the company’s stock.

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.