Gibraltar Capital Management Inc. Boosts Stake in APA Co. (NASDAQ:APA)

Gibraltar Capital Management Inc. lifted its holdings in APA Co. (NASDAQ:APA) by 3.3% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 214,450 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 6,872 shares during the period. APA comprises about 2.2% of Gibraltar Capital Management Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 24th largest holding. Gibraltar Capital Management Inc. owned 0.06% of APA worth $4,952,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of APA by 12.6% during the third quarter. Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC now owns 30,471,834 shares of the company’s stock worth $745,341,000 after purchasing an additional 3,411,270 shares in the last quarter. Harris Associates L P increased its stake in APA by 20.8% during the 3rd quarter. Harris Associates L P now owns 24,914,700 shares of the company’s stock worth $609,414,000 after buying an additional 4,293,932 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of APA by 4.2% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 11,991,513 shares of the company’s stock valued at $293,312,000 after acquiring an additional 485,291 shares during the last quarter. Smead Capital Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of APA by 3.5% in the third quarter. Smead Capital Management Inc. now owns 9,667,452 shares of the company’s stock valued at $236,466,000 after acquiring an additional 326,042 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of APA by 2.5% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 9,307,186 shares of the company’s stock worth $226,928,000 after purchasing an additional 224,547 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.01% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at APA

In other APA news, Director Juliet S. Ellis bought 4,391 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 12th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $22.78 per share, with a total value of $100,026.98. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 12,436 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $283,292.08. The trade was a 54.58 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 1.30% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

APA Stock Down 2.1 %

APA stock opened at $22.38 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $8.28 billion, a PE ratio of 3.16 and a beta of 3.15. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03, a current ratio of 1.24 and a quick ratio of 1.24. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $22.97 and its two-hundred day moving average is $24.14. APA Co. has a 1-year low of $20.32 and a 1-year high of $36.04.

APA Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 22nd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 22nd will be issued a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 22nd. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.47%. APA’s payout ratio is currently 14.12%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on APA shares. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and set a $32.00 target price on shares of APA in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Truist Financial dropped their price objective on shares of APA from $36.00 to $33.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, November 8th. Citigroup decreased their target price on shares of APA from $29.00 to $24.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, November 26th. UBS Group dropped their price target on APA from $28.00 to $27.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, December 9th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company downgraded APA from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and reduced their price objective for the stock from $42.00 to $25.00 in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have assigned a hold rating, four have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $30.65.

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.