APA Co. (NASDAQ:APA) Stake Trimmed by Byrne Asset Management LLC

Byrne Asset Management LLC cut its position in shares of APA Co. (NASDAQ:APA) by 44.7% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 1,175 shares of the company’s stock after selling 950 shares during the period. Byrne Asset Management LLC’s holdings in APA were worth $27,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in APA. Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in APA by 12.6% in the 3rd 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 during the period. Harris Associates L P boosted its position in shares of APA by 20.8% in the third 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 during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew 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 buying an additional 485,291 shares in the last quarter. Smead Capital Management Inc. raised its position in APA by 3.5% during the third quarter. Smead Capital Management Inc. now owns 9,667,452 shares of the company’s stock valued at $236,466,000 after buying an additional 326,042 shares during the period. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in APA by 2.5% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 9,307,186 shares of the company’s stock worth $226,928,000 after acquiring an additional 224,547 shares in the last quarter. 83.01% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Piper Sandler dropped their target price on APA from $26.00 to $23.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. Mizuho decreased their target price on shares of APA from $25.00 to $24.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, December 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on shares of APA from $29.00 to $25.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. Citigroup reduced their price objective on APA from $29.00 to $24.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, November 26th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group cut their price target on APA from $25.00 to $22.00 and set a “sell” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 3rd. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have issued a hold rating, four have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $30.65.

Insider Buying and Selling at APA

In other news, Director Juliet S. Ellis acquired 4,391 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 12th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $22.78 per share, for a total transaction of $100,026.98. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 12,436 shares in the company, valued at approximately $283,292.08. This trade represents a 54.58 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 1.30% of the company’s stock.

APA Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ APA opened at $21.67 on Friday. APA Co. has a 12 month low of $20.32 and a 12 month high of $36.04. The company has a quick ratio of 1.24, a current ratio of 1.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03. The company has a market cap of $8.02 billion, a P/E ratio of 3.06 and a beta of 3.15. The business’s 50 day moving average is $22.76 and its two-hundred day moving average is $24.77.

APA Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 22nd. Investors of record on Tuesday, April 22nd will be paid a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.61%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 22nd. APA’s payout ratio is currently 14.12%.

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.