APA (NASDAQ:APA) Lowered to “Hold” Rating by Zacks Research

APA (NASDAQ:APA) was downgraded by investment analysts at Zacks Research from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report issued on Tuesday,Zacks.com reports.

Several other equities analysts have also issued reports on the company. Wolfe Research boosted their target price on APA from $45.00 to $47.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, April 6th. Roth Mkm boosted their target price on APA from $27.00 to $37.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 15th. Scotiabank boosted their target price on APA from $26.00 to $36.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Wall Street Zen upgraded APA from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, May 16th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on APA from $21.00 to $39.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 9th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eighteen have given a Hold rating and four have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $40.96.

APA Price Performance

APA stock opened at $36.62 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $12.94 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.54 and a beta of 0.38. APA has a 1 year low of $16.88 and a 1 year high of $45.66. The business has a 50-day moving average of $39.07 and a 200-day moving average of $30.99. The company has a current ratio of 0.92, a quick ratio of 0.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58.

APA (NASDAQ:APA) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The company reported $1.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.11 by $0.27. The company had revenue of $2.33 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.13 billion. APA had a return on equity of 20.70% and a net margin of 17.38%.The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 11.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.06 EPS. On average, equities analysts anticipate that APA will post 5.06 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Matthew Regis Bob sold 23,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $36.23, for a total transaction of $833,290.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 6,634 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $240,349.82. This represents a 77.61% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, VP Mark D. Maddox sold 9,800 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.04, for a total value of $392,392.00. Following the sale, the vice president directly owned 66,810 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,675,072.40. The trade was a 12.79% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 0.73% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On APA

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Hollencrest Capital Management boosted its position in APA by 520.8% during the 1st quarter. Hollencrest Capital Management now owns 596 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 500 shares during the last quarter. Cedar Mountain Advisors LLC acquired a new position in APA during the 1st quarter worth approximately $28,000. Global Assets Advisory LLC acquired a new position in APA during the 1st quarter worth approximately $44,000. Altshuler Shaham Ltd boosted its position in APA by 36.7% during the 1st quarter. Altshuler Shaham Ltd now owns 1,229 shares of the company’s stock worth $52,000 after acquiring an additional 330 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Summit Securities Group LLC boosted its position in APA by 115.1% during the 4th quarter. Summit Securities Group LLC now owns 1,327 shares of the company’s stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 710 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.01% of the company’s stock.

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.