GAMMA Investing LLC Invests $95,000 in APA Co. (NASDAQ:APA)

GAMMA Investing LLC purchased a new stake in shares of APA Co. (NASDAQ:APA) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm purchased 2,659 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $95,000.

Other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund boosted its holdings in APA by 30.0% in the fourth quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund now owns 176,896 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,347,000 after acquiring an additional 40,785 shares in the last quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC boosted its stake in APA by 8.8% in the 4th quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC now owns 360,853 shares of the company’s stock worth $12,947,000 after purchasing an additional 29,300 shares in the last quarter. Duality Advisers LP grew its position in APA by 35.0% during the 4th quarter. Duality Advisers LP now owns 41,098 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,475,000 after purchasing an additional 10,663 shares during the last quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd increased its stake in APA by 1.5% during the 4th quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd now owns 25,029 shares of the company’s stock valued at $898,000 after purchasing an additional 358 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Signaturefd LLC raised its holdings in APA by 43.0% in the fourth quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 5,434 shares of the company’s stock worth $195,000 after buying an additional 1,633 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 83.01% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Piper Sandler increased their price target on shares of APA from $33.00 to $35.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, April 19th. Barclays began coverage on APA in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $40.00 target price on the stock. Susquehanna boosted their price target on APA from $50.00 to $54.00 and gave the stock a “positive” rating in a research note on Monday, April 22nd. StockNews.com raised APA from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 23rd. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and issued a $45.00 target price on shares of APA in a research report on Monday, April 8th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, APA currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $42.25.

APA Stock Performance

NASDAQ:APA opened at $32.49 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a current ratio of 1.02. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $32.55 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $34.39. The firm has a market capitalization of $9.78 billion, a PE ratio of 3.50 and a beta of 3.27. APA Co. has a 52-week low of $29.47 and a 52-week high of $46.15.

APA (NASDAQ:APA) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 22nd. The company reported $1.15 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.33 by ($0.18). APA had a net margin of 34.95% and a return on equity of 62.64%. The company had revenue of $2.17 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.07 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.48 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was down 12.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts forecast that APA Co. will post 5.03 EPS for the current year.

APA Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 22nd. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 22nd will be given a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 19th. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.08%. APA’s payout ratio is 10.78%.

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.