APA (NASDAQ:APA) Sets New 12-Month Low – Time to Sell?

APA Co. (NASDAQ:APA)’s share price reached a new 52-week low during trading on Thursday . The stock traded as low as $17.66 and last traded at $18.54, with a volume of 14014160 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $18.57.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have weighed in on APA shares. Wells Fargo & Company lowered shares of APA from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and decreased their price objective for the stock from $42.00 to $25.00 in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. Barclays reduced their price target on shares of APA from $30.00 to $27.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, November 8th. Piper Sandler decreased their price target on shares of APA from $26.00 to $23.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on APA from $29.00 to $25.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th. Finally, Truist Financial cut their target price on APA from $36.00 to $33.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, November 8th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have assigned a hold rating, four have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $29.80.

APA Trading Down 0.2 %

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 firm has a market capitalization of $6.86 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 3.26. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $22.80 and its 200 day moving average is $23.79.

APA (NASDAQ:APA) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 26th. The company reported $0.79 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.97 by ($0.18). APA had a net margin of 24.36% and a return on equity of 27.86%. The company had revenue of $2.50 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.31 billion. Equities analysts forecast that APA Co. will post 4.03 earnings per share for the current year.

APA Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 22nd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 22nd will be issued a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.39%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 22nd. APA’s payout ratio is 44.25%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other APA news, Director Juliet S. Ellis purchased 4,391 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 12th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $22.78 per share, for a total transaction of $100,026.98. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 12,436 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $283,292.08. This represents a 54.58 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Corporate insiders own 1.30% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of APA

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. boosted its stake in shares of APA by 1,087.9% during the 4th quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. now owns 1,176 shares of the company’s stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 1,077 shares during the period. TD Private Client Wealth LLC lifted its holdings in shares of APA by 84.1% during the 3rd quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC now owns 1,182 shares of the company’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 540 shares during the last quarter. Riverview Trust Co grew its stake in shares of APA by 5,718.2% in the 4th quarter. Riverview Trust Co now owns 1,280 shares of the company’s stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 1,258 shares in the last quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB increased its holdings in APA by 77.9% in the fourth quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 1,338 shares of the company’s stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 586 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Runnymede Capital Advisors Inc. bought a new position in APA during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $35,000. 83.01% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

APA Company Profile

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.