State of Alaska Department of Revenue Reduces Stock Position in APA Co. (NASDAQ:APA)

State of Alaska Department of Revenue lessened its holdings in APA Co. (NASDAQ:APA) by 28.7% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 42,178 shares of the company’s stock after selling 17,019 shares during the quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue’s holdings in APA were worth $973,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC raised its position in shares of APA by 22.8% in the fourth quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 65,071 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,503,000 after buying an additional 12,077 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its position in shares of APA by 4.2% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 11,991,513 shares of the company’s stock worth $293,312,000 after buying an additional 485,291 shares in the last quarter. Baader Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised its position in shares of APA by 175.8% in the fourth quarter. Baader Bank Aktiengesellschaft now owns 23,500 shares of the company’s stock worth $543,000 after buying an additional 14,980 shares in the last quarter. HITE Hedge Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of APA in the third quarter worth $7,238,000. Finally, Victory Capital Management Inc. raised its position in shares of APA by 13.5% in the third quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,261,324 shares of the company’s stock worth $30,852,000 after buying an additional 149,762 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.01% of the company’s stock.

APA Stock Up 0.5 %

Shares of NASDAQ:APA opened at $22.49 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $22.81 and its 200-day moving average price is $24.54. APA Co. has a 12-month low of $20.32 and a 12-month high of $36.04. The stock has a market capitalization of $8.32 billion, a P/E ratio of 3.18 and a beta of 3.15. The company has a current ratio of 1.24, a quick ratio of 1.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03.

APA Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 22nd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, April 22nd will be paid 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 dividend yield of 4.45%. APA’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 14.12%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Piper Sandler lowered their price objective on APA from $26.00 to $23.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. Bernstein Bank reduced their target price on APA from $30.00 to $28.00 in a research note on Friday, October 18th. Wells Fargo & Company cut APA from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and reduced their target price for the company from $42.00 to $25.00 in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. Royal Bank of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and issued a $32.00 target price on shares of APA in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on APA from $29.00 to $25.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have issued a hold rating, four have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, APA currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $30.65.

Insider Transactions at APA

In other news, Director Juliet S. Ellis bought 4,391 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 12th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $22.78 per share, for a total transaction of $100,026.98. Following the completion of the acquisition, 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 acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 1.30% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.