Ritholtz Wealth Management Takes Position in APA Corporation $APA

Ritholtz Wealth Management purchased a new position in shares of APA Corporation (NASDAQ:APA) during the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor purchased 27,642 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $671,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Spire Wealth Management raised its position in shares of APA by 179.6% in the third quarter. Spire Wealth Management now owns 1,521 shares of the company’s stock worth $37,000 after acquiring an additional 977 shares during the period. CVA Family Office LLC increased its stake in shares of APA by 6,096.7% in the 2nd quarter. CVA Family Office LLC now owns 1,859 shares of the company’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 1,829 shares in the last quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC raised its holdings in APA by 144.9% in the 2nd quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC now owns 1,866 shares of the company’s stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 1,104 shares during the period. MAI Capital Management boosted its position in APA by 76.5% during the second quarter. MAI Capital Management now owns 2,134 shares of the company’s stock worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 925 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Whittier Trust Co. grew its holdings in APA by 214.3% in the second quarter. Whittier Trust Co. now owns 2,200 shares of the company’s stock valued at $40,000 after purchasing an additional 1,500 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.01% of the company’s stock.

APA Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ APA opened at $25.35 on Wednesday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $24.97 and a 200-day simple moving average of $23.00. The company has a quick ratio of 0.78, a current ratio of 0.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62. The stock has a market capitalization of $8.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.09, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 10.75 and a beta of 0.74. APA Corporation has a 52 week low of $13.58 and a 52 week high of $27.72.

APA (NASDAQ:APA) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 5th. The company reported $0.93 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.74 by $0.19. APA had a net margin of 15.49% and a return on equity of 19.86%. The company had revenue of $2.12 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.06 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.00 EPS. APA’s revenue was down 16.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts predict that APA Corporation will post 4.03 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

APA Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 23rd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, January 22nd will be issued a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.9%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, January 22nd. APA’s dividend payout ratio is presently 24.04%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

APA has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Susquehanna increased their target price on APA from $30.00 to $32.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 12th. Evercore ISI reduced their price objective on shares of APA from $21.00 to $16.00 in a research report on Tuesday, November 4th. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of APA from $22.00 to $23.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 20th. Citigroup upped their price target on shares of APA from $24.00 to $25.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 26th. Finally, William Blair assumed coverage on shares of APA in a research note on Wednesday, November 26th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $32.00 price target on the stock. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, sixteen have assigned a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $26.59.

APA Company Profile

APA Corporation (NASDAQ: APA) is an independent exploration and production company engaged in the acquisition, development and production of oil and natural gas resources. The company operates through three core regions: the United States, Egypt and the North Sea. Through its integrated approach, APA combines geological and geophysical expertise with technical innovation to identify and develop hydrocarbons in both onshore and offshore settings.

In the United States, APA’s largest position is in the Permian Basin of West Texas and southeastern New Mexico, where it holds substantial acreage dedicated to oil-focused drilling and production.