Stephens Issues Positive Forecast for APA (NASDAQ:APA) Stock Price

APA (NASDAQ:APA) had its price target increased by Stephens from $23.00 to $24.00 in a report published on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. Stephens currently has an equal weight rating on the stock.

A number of other brokerages have also commented on APA. Evercore lowered their price target on APA from $21.00 to $16.00 in a report on Tuesday, November 4th. William Blair assumed coverage on shares of APA in a research report on Wednesday, November 26th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $32.00 target price for the company. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price target on shares of APA from $21.00 to $23.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. Raymond James Financial reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $31.00 price target on shares of APA in a research note on Monday, November 24th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein lowered their price objective on shares of APA from $26.00 to $25.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 5th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, sixteen have assigned a Hold rating and five have given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $26.39.

APA Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ APA opened at $27.34 on Tuesday. APA has a 12-month low of $13.58 and a 12-month high of $28.56. The company has a market cap of $9.70 billion, a PE ratio of 6.57, a P/E/G ratio of 12.76 and a beta of 0.74. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $25.65 and a 200-day simple moving average of $24.05. The company has a current ratio of 0.78, a quick ratio of 0.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62.

APA Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 22nd. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 22nd will be given a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 22nd. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.7%. APA’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 24.04%.

Institutional Trading of APA

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of APA by 76.9% in the fourth quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 7,171,963 shares of the company’s stock worth $175,426,000 after buying an additional 3,117,032 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of APA by 157.1% in the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 3,060,135 shares of the company’s stock valued at $55,970,000 after acquiring an additional 1,869,891 shares in the last quarter. Morgan Stanley boosted its stake in APA by 21.8% in the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 10,425,586 shares of the company’s stock worth $255,010,000 after purchasing an additional 1,864,900 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its position in APA by 13.6% during the 3rd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 14,030,230 shares of the company’s stock worth $340,657,000 after purchasing an additional 1,674,739 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Northern Trust Corp raised its stake in APA by 29.6% during the 3rd quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 4,462,476 shares of the company’s stock valued at $108,349,000 after purchasing an additional 1,018,326 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.01% of the company’s stock.

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.