Matthew Regis Bob Sells 23,000 Shares of APA (NASDAQ:APA) Stock

APA Corporation (NASDAQ:APA) 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 value of $833,290.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 6,634 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $240,349.82. The trade was a 77.61% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link.

APA Stock Up 2.8%

Shares of APA opened at $39.11 on Friday. APA Corporation has a 52-week low of $13.58 and a 52-week high of $39.52. The company has a quick ratio of 0.82, a current ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $29.12 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $25.84. The company has a market capitalization of $13.82 billion, a PE ratio of 9.80, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 17.30 and a beta of 0.67.

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

APA Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 22nd. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 22nd will be paid a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 22nd. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.6%. APA’s payout ratio is 25.06%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On APA

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in APA. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. increased its holdings in APA by 0.4% in the 4th quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. now owns 106,667 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,609,000 after purchasing an additional 375 shares during the last quarter. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. lifted its stake in APA by 1.4% during the fourth quarter. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. now owns 28,171 shares of the company’s stock worth $689,000 after purchasing an additional 396 shares in the last quarter. Patriot Financial Group Insurance Agency LLC boosted its position in shares of APA by 3.2% during the fourth quarter. Patriot Financial Group Insurance Agency LLC now owns 14,648 shares of the company’s stock worth $358,000 after buying an additional 461 shares during the period. Howard Capital Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of APA by 0.5% during the third quarter. Howard Capital Management Inc. now owns 94,848 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,303,000 after buying an additional 485 shares during the period. Finally, one8zero8 LLC grew its stake in shares of APA by 1.2% in the third quarter. one8zero8 LLC now owns 42,254 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,026,000 after buying an additional 488 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.01% of the company’s stock.

Key Headlines Impacting APA

Here are the key news stories impacting APA this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Crude-driven rally lifted APA’s shares as Middle East supply concerns pushed oil prices higher, which typically increases exploration & production firms’ near-term cash‑flow expectations and valuation leverage. APA gains as crude oil jumps on renewed Middle East supply fears
• Positive Sentiment: JPMorgan raised its price target on APA to $38 (from $29) while keeping a “neutral” rating — the PT increase signals improved analyst near-term valuation (even though the firm remains cautious). MarketScreener
• Neutral Sentiment: Mizuho and a separate note reported modest upward adjustments to APA’s targets (Mizuho to $29; another report to $27). These lifts are supportive but still sit below some investor expectations and the current trading level. APA Price Target Raised to $27.00 Mizuho Boosts APA Price Target to $29.00
• Neutral Sentiment: Short-interest data in the latest print appear anomalous (reported as 0 shares / 0.0 days), suggesting a data or reporting issue rather than a material change in short positioning; treat this item cautiously.
• Negative Sentiment: Insider selling: Director Matthew Regis Bob sold 23,000 shares at an average $36.23 (≈$833k), reducing his holdings by ~77.6% — an outsized insider sale that can weigh on sentiment. SEC filing
• Negative Sentiment: QuiverQuant’s summary notes sizable historical institutional reductions (e.g., Harris Associates, UBS AM, Blackstone) from recent quarters — large past selling by major holders can cap rallies and increase volatility. QuiverQuant institutional holdings

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

APA has been the topic of several analyst reports. Citigroup lifted their price target on shares of APA from $24.00 to $25.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 26th. Sanford C. Bernstein lowered their price objective on APA from $26.00 to $25.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, January 5th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their target price on APA from $23.00 to $29.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on APA from $29.00 to $38.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday. Finally, Capital One Financial increased their price target on APA from $31.00 to $32.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 11th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seventeen have given a Hold rating and five have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, APA currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $30.52.

About APA

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.