APA Co. (NASDAQ:APA) Shares Sold by Moors & Cabot Inc.

Moors & Cabot Inc. lowered its holdings in APA Co. (NASDAQ:APA) by 2.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 24,800 shares of the company’s stock after selling 529 shares during the quarter. Moors & Cabot Inc.’s holdings in APA were worth $573,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in APA. Lane Generational LLC lifted its position in shares of APA by 49.0% during the 4th quarter. Lane Generational LLC now owns 111,158 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,567,000 after acquiring an additional 36,577 shares during the period. AGF Management Ltd. acquired a new position in APA during the fourth quarter worth $2,653,000. Marathon Trading Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in APA during the fourth quarter worth $1,284,000. Investors Research Corp boosted its position in APA by 1,532.4% during the fourth quarter. Investors Research Corp now owns 36,436 shares of the company’s stock worth $841,000 after purchasing an additional 34,204 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Daiwa Securities Group Inc. grew its holdings in APA by 6.2% in the fourth quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 47,999 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,108,000 after purchasing an additional 2,805 shares during the last quarter. 83.01% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

APA Stock Performance

Shares of APA stock opened at $19.61 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 2.77 and a beta of 3.26. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $22.29 and a 200 day moving average price of $23.37. APA Co. has a one year low of $17.66 and a one year high of $36.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 1.24 and a current ratio of 1.24.

APA (NASDAQ:APA) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 26th. The company reported $0.79 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.97 by ($0.18). APA had a return on equity of 27.86% and a net margin of 24.36%. The firm had revenue of $2.50 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.31 billion. Sell-side analysts anticipate that APA Co. will post 4.03 EPS for the current year.

APA Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 22nd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, April 22nd will be issued a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.10%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 22nd. APA’s payout ratio is currently 44.25%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently commented on APA. Susquehanna decreased their price objective on shares of APA from $33.00 to $31.00 and set a “positive” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, March 3rd. UBS Group cut their target price on shares of APA from $28.00 to $27.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, December 9th. Mizuho lowered their price target on shares of APA from $25.00 to $24.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, December 16th. Wells Fargo & Company downgraded APA from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and cut their price objective for the stock from $42.00 to $25.00 in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on APA from $23.00 to $20.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have given a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, APA has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $28.90.

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.