LPL Financial LLC Purchases 82,453 Shares of APA Co. (NASDAQ:APA)

LPL Financial LLC grew its position in APA Co. (NASDAQ:APA) by 45.2% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 265,054 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 82,453 shares during the period. LPL Financial LLC’s holdings in APA were worth $6,120,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Samalin Investment Counsel LLC acquired a new stake in APA during the 4th quarter valued at $307,000. Swan Global Investments LLC bought a new stake in shares of APA during the fourth quarter worth $210,000. Fox Run Management L.L.C. acquired a new stake in shares of APA in the fourth quarter valued at $431,000. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS bought a new position in shares of APA in the fourth quarter valued at about $6,465,000. Finally, AXQ Capital LP bought a new position in shares of APA in the fourth quarter valued at about $527,000. 83.01% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

APA has been the subject of several research reports. Citigroup lowered their price objective on shares of APA from $24.00 to $20.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, March 17th. Susquehanna lowered their price target on shares of APA from $33.00 to $31.00 and set a “positive” rating for the company in a report on Monday, March 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on APA from $23.00 to $20.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, March 13th. UBS Group decreased their price objective on APA from $28.00 to $27.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, December 9th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on APA from $25.00 to $23.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, March 26th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have given a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, APA currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $27.68.

APA Stock Down 1.4 %

Shares of APA stock opened at $14.96 on Tuesday. APA Co. has a 1 year low of $14.37 and a 1 year high of $36.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03, a current ratio of 1.24 and a quick ratio of 1.24. The company has a market capitalization of $5.45 billion, a P/E ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 2.74. The business has a 50-day moving average of $20.97 and a two-hundred day moving average of $22.65.

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%. As a group, equities analysts predict that APA Co. will post 4.03 EPS for the current 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 is Tuesday, April 22nd. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.68%. APA’s dividend payout ratio is currently 44.25%.

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.