Piper Sandler Cuts APA (NASDAQ:APA) Price Target to $23.00

APA (NASDAQ:APA) had its target price decreased by Piper Sandler from $26.00 to $23.00 in a report issued on Tuesday morning,Benzinga reports. Piper Sandler currently has a neutral rating on the stock.

APA has been the subject of a number of other reports. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price target on shares of APA from $34.00 to $32.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, November 11th. UBS Group reduced their price target on APA from $28.00 to $27.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, December 9th. Evercore ISI lowered their price objective on APA from $39.00 to $33.00 and set an “in-line” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, September 30th. Citigroup cut 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. Finally, Truist Financial lowered their price target on shares of APA from $36.00 to $33.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, November 8th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have issued a hold rating, four have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, APA has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $31.14.

APA Stock Performance

Shares of APA opened at $20.48 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 1.24 and a current ratio of 1.24. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 3.18. APA has a 52-week low of $20.32 and a 52-week high of $37.82. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $23.07 and its 200 day simple moving average is $26.36.

APA Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 21st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, January 22nd will be given a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.88%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, January 22nd. APA’s dividend payout ratio is currently 14.12%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Juliet S. Ellis acquired 4,391 shares of APA stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 12th. The stock was bought at an average price of $22.78 per share, with a total value of $100,026.98. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 12,436 shares in the company, valued at approximately $283,292.08. This represents a 54.58 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Company insiders own 1.30% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On APA

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI lifted its stake in shares of APA by 6.7% in the second quarter. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI now owns 6,860 shares of the company’s stock worth $202,000 after buying an additional 429 shares in the last quarter. Signaturefd LLC boosted its stake in APA by 7.1% during the 2nd quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 7,108 shares of the company’s stock valued at $209,000 after purchasing an additional 472 shares during the last quarter. Washington Trust Bank increased its holdings in shares of APA by 5.9% in the 2nd quarter. Washington Trust Bank now owns 8,794 shares of the company’s stock worth $259,000 after purchasing an additional 492 shares in the last quarter. Empirical Finance LLC raised its stake in shares of APA by 1.6% in the third quarter. Empirical Finance LLC now owns 31,272 shares of the company’s stock worth $765,000 after purchasing an additional 497 shares during the last quarter. Finally, UMB Bank n.a. lifted its holdings in shares of APA by 16.9% during the third quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 3,556 shares of the company’s stock valued at $87,000 after purchasing an additional 513 shares in the last quarter. 83.01% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.