Ardevora Asset Management LLP Trims Holdings in APA Co. (NASDAQ:APA)

Ardevora Asset Management LLP lowered its holdings in APA Co. (NASDAQ:APA) by 64.5% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 150,822 shares of the company’s stock after selling 273,649 shares during the period. Ardevora Asset Management LLP’s holdings in APA were worth $5,411,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Lido Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of APA by 1.2% in the 3rd quarter. Lido Advisors LLC now owns 21,901 shares of the company’s stock valued at $900,000 after purchasing an additional 266 shares during the period. DNB Asset Management AS increased its stake in shares of APA by 0.6% in the 4th quarter. DNB Asset Management AS now owns 49,846 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,788,000 after acquiring an additional 308 shares in the last quarter. HB Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of APA by 5.0% during the fourth quarter. HB Wealth Management LLC now owns 6,528 shares of the company’s stock valued at $234,000 after purchasing an additional 309 shares during the last quarter. NovaPoint Capital LLC raised its stake in APA by 5.8% during the third quarter. NovaPoint Capital LLC now owns 6,231 shares of the company’s stock valued at $256,000 after buying an additional 342 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd increased its holdings in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 358 shares in the last quarter. 83.01% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Barclays began coverage on shares of APA in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $40.00 price target on the stock. Morgan Stanley restated an “underweight” rating and issued a $28.00 price objective on shares of APA in a report on Monday, April 15th. Susquehanna lifted their target price on APA from $50.00 to $54.00 and gave the stock a “positive” rating in a report on Monday. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $45.00 price objective on shares of APA in a report on Monday, April 8th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their price target on shares of APA from $35.00 to $31.00 and set a “sell” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, March 26th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $42.10.

APA Stock Performance

NASDAQ:APA traded down $0.12 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $32.24. 988,386 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 6,820,649. The company has a quick ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41. The stock 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 50 day simple moving average of $32.37 and a 200-day simple moving average of $34.61. APA Co. has a 1 year low of $29.47 and a 1 year high of $46.15.

APA (NASDAQ:APA) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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 return on equity of 62.64% and a net margin of 34.95%. The company had revenue of $2.17 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.07 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.48 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was down 12.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts anticipate 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. Investors of record on Monday, April 22nd will be issued a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 19th. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.10%. APA’s dividend payout ratio is presently 10.78%.

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.