AMF Tjanstepension AB Makes New $3.49 Million Investment in APA Co. (NASDAQ:APA)

AMF Tjanstepension AB purchased a new stake in APA Co. (NASDAQ:APA) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 150,710 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,486,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of APA. Harris Associates L P raised its position in shares of APA by 20.8% in the third quarter. Harris Associates L P now owns 24,914,700 shares of the company’s stock valued at $609,414,000 after purchasing an additional 4,293,932 shares during the period. Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of APA by 12.6% in the third quarter. Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC now owns 30,471,834 shares of the company’s stock valued at $745,341,000 after purchasing an additional 3,411,270 shares during the period. Mizuho Securities USA LLC increased its holdings in APA by 3,450.8% during the 3rd quarter. Mizuho Securities USA LLC now owns 985,907 shares of the company’s stock worth $24,115,000 after acquiring an additional 958,141 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its holdings in APA by 29.4% during the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 4,092,666 shares of the company’s stock worth $94,500,000 after acquiring an additional 929,770 shares during the period. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in APA by 7.5% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 12,886,087 shares of the company’s stock worth $297,540,000 after acquiring an additional 894,574 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 83.01% of the company’s stock.

APA Trading Up 0.5 %

NASDAQ:APA opened at $18.84 on Friday. The company has a fifty day moving average of $22.67 and a 200 day moving average of $23.65. APA Co. has a 52 week low of $17.66 and a 52 week high of $36.04. 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 $6.97 billion, a P/E ratio of 2.66 and a beta of 3.26.

APA (NASDAQ:APA) last posted its quarterly earnings results 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 firm had revenue of $2.50 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.31 billion. On average, research analysts predict that APA Co. will post 4.03 earnings per share for the current year.

APA Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 22nd. Investors of record on Tuesday, April 22nd will be issued a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 22nd. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.31%. APA’s dividend payout ratio is currently 44.25%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms recently weighed in on APA. Raymond James upped their target price on shares of APA from $44.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Mizuho decreased their target price on shares of APA from $25.00 to $24.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, December 16th. Citigroup decreased their target price on shares of APA from $29.00 to $24.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, November 26th. UBS Group decreased their target price on shares of APA from $28.00 to $27.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, December 9th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lowered shares of APA from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and decreased their target price for the stock from $42.00 to $25.00 in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have given a hold rating, four have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, APA has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $29.80.

Insider Activity at APA

In related news, Director Juliet S. Ellis acquired 4,391 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 12th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $22.78 per share, for a total transaction of $100,026.98. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 12,436 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $283,292.08. This trade represents a 54.58 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 1.30% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

APA 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.