APA (NASDAQ:APA) Price Target Raised to $40.00

APA (NASDAQ:APA) had its price objective lifted by Benchmark from $33.00 to $40.00 in a research note released on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a buy rating on the stock.

Other research analysts also recently issued research reports about the company. Wolfe Research upped their price objective on APA from $36.00 to $39.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, February 26th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of APA in a research note on Monday, December 29th. TD Cowen upgraded APA to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, February 9th. Piper Sandler upped their price target on APA from $23.00 to $30.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday. Finally, Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on APA from $23.00 to $21.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 23rd. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seventeen have issued a Hold rating and four have issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, APA currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $28.92.

APA Trading Up 0.9%

APA opened at $32.68 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 0.82, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61. The stock has a market capitalization of $11.54 billion, a PE ratio of 8.19, a PEG ratio of 15.88 and a beta of 0.67. APA has a 1-year low of $13.58 and a 1-year high of $33.42. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $27.04 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $24.96.

APA (NASDAQ:APA) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 25th. The company reported $0.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.62 by $0.29. APA had a net margin of 15.55% and a return on equity of 19.89%. The company had revenue of $1.99 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.89 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.79 earnings per share. APA’s quarterly revenue was down 26.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that APA will post 4.03 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

APA Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 22nd. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, April 22nd will be given a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.1%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 22nd. APA’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 25.06%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On APA

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. DGS Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in APA in the fourth quarter valued at about $244,000. Compound Planning Inc. grew its position in shares of APA by 45.5% during the 4th quarter. Compound Planning Inc. now owns 15,173 shares of the company’s stock worth $371,000 after buying an additional 4,744 shares during the period. Corient Private Wealth LLC grew its position in shares of APA by 212.2% during the 4th quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 416,796 shares of the company’s stock worth $10,195,000 after buying an additional 283,299 shares during the period. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV increased its stake in shares of APA by 13.5% in the 4th quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV now owns 102,471 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,506,000 after acquiring an additional 12,211 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Vident Advisory LLC increased its stake in shares of APA by 12.2% in the 4th quarter. Vident Advisory LLC now owns 144,112 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,525,000 after acquiring an additional 15,657 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 83.01% of the company’s stock.

Key APA News

Here are the key news stories impacting APA this week:

• Positive Sentiment: APA announced a dual listing on Nasdaq Texas, which could increase local liquidity and visibility with Texas‑based investors and reinforce the company’s Permian Basin ties. APA Corporation Announces Dual Listing on Nasdaq Texas
• Positive Sentiment: Multiple bullish analyst notes and price‑target increases have surfaced this week (Benchmark raised its target to $40 with a Buy; Susquehanna and BMO published positive commentary and a separate report raised the target to $34), supporting upward momentum and investor confidence. APA Price Target Raised to $34
• Positive Sentiment: Market commentary highlighted APA as a value upstream pick amid oil volatility, noting low valuation multiples, improved cost structure and cash flow — a narrative that attracts income/value‑oriented energy investors. Why One Energy Expert Is Betting on These 3 Oil Stocks Now
• Neutral Sentiment: RBC and Piper Sandler raised price targets (to $29 and $30) but kept sector‑perform/neutral ratings — a mixed signal that trims downside risk but doesn’t add a strong buy case. RBC/Piper Sandler PT adjustments
• Neutral Sentiment: Short‑interest reports flagged a “large increase” but the underlying data shows 0 shares / NaN changes — likely a data error and currently not meaningful for price pressure or squeeze dynamics.
• Neutral Sentiment: Legislative chatter (H.R.7554) aiming to limit greenhouse‑gas regulation could, if enacted, ease regulatory risk for fossil‑fuel producers — a policy tailwind but highly uncertain and not a near‑term catalyst. H.R. 7554 CARBON Act
• Negative Sentiment: Scotiabank trimmed its FY2027 EPS estimate (from $1.65 to $1.50), signaling some analyst caution on near‑term earnings power; that could cap upside if others follow with cuts. Scotiabank cuts FY2027 estimate (MarketBeat)

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.