Vontobel Holding Ltd. Acquires 16,230 Shares of APA Co. (NASDAQ:APA)

Vontobel Holding Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of APA Co. (NASDAQ:APA) by 9.3% in the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 191,616 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 16,230 shares during the period. Vontobel Holding Ltd. owned 0.05% of APA worth $4,687,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of APA. American National Bank boosted its position in APA by 208.5% during the 1st quarter. American National Bank now owns 725 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 490 shares in the last quarter. Covestor Ltd lifted its position in APA by 75.4% during the 1st quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 1,093 shares of the company’s stock valued at $38,000 after acquiring an additional 470 shares during the period. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. boosted its stake in APA by 386.7% during the second quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. now owns 1,358 shares of the company’s stock worth $40,000 after acquiring an additional 1,079 shares in the last quarter. Rothschild Investment LLC purchased a new stake in APA in the second quarter worth about $42,000. Finally, GPS Wealth Strategies Group LLC increased its stake in shares of APA by 1,325.0% during the second quarter. GPS Wealth Strategies Group LLC now owns 1,710 shares of the company’s stock valued at $50,000 after purchasing an additional 1,590 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.01% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

APA has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Wolfe Research started coverage on shares of APA in a report on Thursday, July 18th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $42.00 price objective for the company. Sanford C. Bernstein decreased their target price on APA from $37.00 to $30.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 17th. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their target price on shares of APA from $26.00 to $25.00 in a report on Friday. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on APA from $49.00 to $47.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. Finally, Mizuho cut their target price on APA from $35.00 to $28.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, September 16th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have issued a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, APA currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $34.18.

APA Stock Up 1.0 %

Shares of NASDAQ:APA opened at $25.16 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $9.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 2.81 and a beta of 3.23. APA Co. has a 12 month low of $22.72 and a 12 month high of $43.58. The company has a current ratio of 1.01, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $26.43 and a 200 day moving average price of $29.11.

APA (NASDAQ:APA) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 31st. The company reported $1.17 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.95 by $0.22. The business had revenue of $2.54 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.28 billion. APA had a return on equity of 35.95% and a net margin of 32.66%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 41.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.85 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts predict that APA Co. will post 3.97 earnings per share for the current year.

APA Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 22nd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, October 22nd will be given a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.97%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, October 22nd. APA’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 11.19%.

APA Company 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.