Ardevora Asset Management LLP Decreases Stake in APA Co. (NASDAQ:APA)

Ardevora Asset Management LLP trimmed its holdings in shares of APA Co. (NASDAQ:APA) by 64.5% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 150,822 shares of the company’s stock after selling 273,649 shares during the quarter. Ardevora Asset Management LLP’s holdings in APA were worth $5,411,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the business. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd increased its stake in APA by 1.5% during the fourth quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd now owns 25,029 shares of the company’s stock valued at $898,000 after purchasing an additional 358 shares during the last quarter. Signaturefd LLC grew its holdings in shares of APA by 43.0% during the fourth quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 5,434 shares of the company’s stock valued at $195,000 after purchasing an additional 1,633 shares during the last quarter. abrdn plc raised its position in shares of APA by 72.4% during the 4th quarter. abrdn plc now owns 129,713 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,654,000 after purchasing an additional 54,456 shares during the period. Institute for Wealth Management LLC. lifted its holdings in shares of APA by 8.3% in the 4th quarter. Institute for Wealth Management LLC. now owns 9,215 shares of the company’s stock worth $331,000 after purchasing an additional 709 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Xponance Inc. boosted its position in APA by 22.5% during the 4th quarter. Xponance Inc. now owns 134,504 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,826,000 after purchasing an additional 24,707 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.01% of the company’s stock.

APA Stock Performance

APA stock traded down $0.12 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $32.24. 988,386 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 6,820,649. APA Co. has a 12 month low of $29.47 and a 12 month high of $46.15. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $32.37 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $34.61. The firm has a market capitalization of $9.71 billion, a P/E ratio of 3.49 and a beta of 3.27. The company has a current ratio of 1.02, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41.

APA (NASDAQ:APA) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 22nd. The company reported $1.15 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.33 by ($0.18). APA had a net margin of 34.95% and a return on equity of 62.64%. The company had revenue of $2.17 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.07 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.48 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 12.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts forecast that APA Co. will post 4.85 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

APA Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 22nd. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 22nd will be paid a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.10%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 19th. APA’s dividend payout ratio is currently 10.78%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently commented on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on APA from $38.00 to $40.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and issued a $45.00 price objective on shares of APA in a report on Monday, April 8th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of APA from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, April 12th. Susquehanna boosted their price objective on APA from $50.00 to $54.00 and gave the stock a “positive” rating in a research note on Monday. Finally, Johnson Rice lowered shares of APA from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $40.00 target price for the company. in a research note on Friday, January 5th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $42.10.

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.