APA Co. (NASDAQ:APA) Director Acquires $100,026.98 in Stock

APA Co. (NASDAQ:APA) Director Juliet S. Ellis acquired 4,391 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 12th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $22.78 per share, with a total value of $100,026.98. Following the purchase, the director now owns 12,436 shares in the company, valued at approximately $283,292.08. This represents a 54.58 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website.

APA Price Performance

APA stock opened at $22.86 on Friday. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $23.51 and its 200 day simple moving average is $26.58. 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 stock has a market cap of $8.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 3.23 and a beta of 3.18. APA Co. has a 12-month low of $20.95 and a 12-month high of $37.82.

APA Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 21st. Investors of record on Wednesday, January 22nd will be paid a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, January 22nd. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.37%. APA’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 14.12%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in APA by 12.6% in the third quarter. Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC now owns 30,471,834 shares of the company’s stock worth $745,341,000 after purchasing an additional 3,411,270 shares during the period. Harris Associates L P raised its stake in APA by 20.8% during the 3rd quarter. Harris Associates L P now owns 24,914,700 shares of the company’s stock worth $609,414,000 after buying an additional 4,293,932 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in APA by 4.2% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 11,991,513 shares of the company’s stock worth $293,312,000 after buying an additional 485,291 shares during the period. Smead Capital Management Inc. lifted its holdings in APA by 3.5% during the third quarter. Smead Capital Management Inc. now owns 9,667,452 shares of the company’s stock worth $236,466,000 after acquiring an additional 326,042 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in APA by 2.5% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 9,307,186 shares of the company’s stock valued at $226,928,000 after acquiring an additional 224,547 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 83.01% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently issued reports on APA shares. Bernstein Bank dropped their price target on shares of APA from $30.00 to $28.00 in a research report on Friday, October 18th. Barclays dropped their target price on APA from $30.00 to $27.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, November 8th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on APA from $49.00 to $47.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their price objective on APA from $26.00 to $25.00 in a research note on Friday, October 18th. Finally, Citigroup reduced their target price on shares of APA from $29.00 to $24.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, November 26th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have issued a hold rating, five have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, APA has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $32.52.

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.