Citigroup Cuts APA (NASDAQ:APA) Price Target to $20.00

APA (NASDAQ:APA) had its price objective reduced by Citigroup from $24.00 to $20.00 in a research report released on Monday morning,Benzinga reports. They currently have a neutral rating on the stock.

Other equities research analysts have also recently issued reports about the stock. Susquehanna dropped their price target on shares of APA from $33.00 to $31.00 and set a “positive” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, March 3rd. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their price target on APA from $25.00 to $22.00 and set a “sell” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on APA from $23.00 to $20.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, March 13th. Mizuho dropped their price target on APA from $25.00 to $24.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, December 16th. Finally, UBS Group lowered their target price on APA from $28.00 to $27.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, December 9th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have assigned a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, APA presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $28.60.

APA Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ APA opened at $20.81 on Monday. APA has a fifty-two week low of $17.66 and a fifty-two week high of $36.05. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $22.09 and its 200 day simple moving average is $23.15. 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 stock has a market cap of $7.58 billion, a P/E ratio of 2.94 and a beta of 3.26.

APA (NASDAQ:APA) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 26th. The company reported $0.79 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.97 by ($0.18). APA had a return on equity of 27.86% and a net margin of 24.36%. The business had revenue of $2.50 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.31 billion. Equities analysts expect that APA will post 4.03 EPS for the current year.

APA Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 22nd. Investors of record on Tuesday, April 22nd will be paid a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 22nd. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.81%. APA’s payout ratio is 44.25%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On APA

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC lifted its holdings in APA by 22.8% in the 4th quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 65,071 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,503,000 after purchasing an additional 12,077 shares during the last quarter. US Bancorp DE lifted its holdings in APA by 2.2% in the 4th quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 47,719 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,102,000 after purchasing an additional 1,010 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in APA by 4.2% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 11,991,513 shares of the company’s stock worth $293,312,000 after purchasing an additional 485,291 shares during the last quarter. Baader Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted its holdings in APA by 175.8% in the 4th quarter. Baader Bank Aktiengesellschaft now owns 23,500 shares of the company’s stock worth $543,000 after purchasing an additional 14,980 shares during the last quarter. Finally, HITE Hedge Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in APA in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $7,238,000. Institutional investors own 83.01% of the company’s stock.

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.