APA (NASDAQ:APA) Stock Price Expected to Rise, Citigroup Analyst Says

APA (NASDAQ:APA) had its target price boosted by equities researchers at Citigroup from $25.00 to $45.00 in a research note issued on Monday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has a “neutral” rating on the stock. Citigroup’s price objective would indicate a potential upside of 6.03% from the company’s previous close.

Several other brokerages also recently issued reports on APA. Piper Sandler upped their price objective on shares of APA from $30.00 to $37.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 12th. Benchmark lifted their target price on shares of APA from $33.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 5th. Susquehanna increased their price target on APA from $32.00 to $37.00 and gave the stock a “positive” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 3rd. Sanford C. Bernstein decreased their price objective on APA from $26.00 to $25.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 5th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of APA in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twenty have given a Hold rating and four have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $35.38.

APA Trading Down 3.0%

Shares of APA stock opened at $42.44 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $14.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.64 and a beta of 0.67. The company has a current ratio of 0.82, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $31.40 and a 200 day moving average price of $26.82. APA has a twelve month low of $13.58 and a twelve month high of $45.66.

APA (NASDAQ:APA) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 25th. The company reported $0.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.62 by $0.29. The company had revenue of $1.99 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.89 billion. APA had a net margin of 15.55% and a return on equity of 19.89%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 26.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.79 EPS. Research analysts forecast that APA will post 4.03 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at APA

In other news, Director Matthew Regis Bob sold 23,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $36.23, for a total transaction of $833,290.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 6,634 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $240,349.82. The trade was a 77.61% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 1.30% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators increased its stake in APA by 276.7% during the third quarter. Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators now owns 1,213 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 891 shares during the last quarter. Summit Securities Group LLC lifted its stake in shares of APA by 115.1% in the 4th quarter. Summit Securities Group LLC now owns 1,327 shares of the company’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 710 shares in the last quarter. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp acquired a new position in shares of APA in the 3rd quarter valued at about $34,000. Spire Wealth Management grew its holdings in shares of APA by 179.6% during the 3rd quarter. Spire Wealth Management now owns 1,521 shares of the company’s stock worth $37,000 after purchasing an additional 977 shares during the period. Finally, Camelot Portfolios LLC purchased a new stake in shares of APA during the 4th quarter worth about $37,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.01% of the company’s stock.

Key Headlines Impacting APA

Here are the key news stories impacting APA this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Stephens raised its price target to $45 (from $24) and kept an “equal weight” rating — a meaningful upward revision that signals improved analyst conviction on valuation. Stephens adjusts price target on APA
• Positive Sentiment: Citigroup also lifted its price target to $45 (from $25) while keeping a “neutral” rating — another upward target re-rate that supports upside consensus near the mid-$40s. Citigroup raises APA price target
• Positive Sentiment: Zacks Research nudged its FY2028 EPS estimate slightly higher to $2.69 (from $2.64), a small fundamental upgrade to forward earnings assumptions (Zacks maintains a “Hold”).
• Neutral Sentiment: Multiple bullish independent write-ups and summaries (Yahoo, MSN, InsiderMonkey) are circulating analyses arguing for APA’s investment case — these can attract longer-term investors but may not move price immediately. Is APA a good stock to buy?
• Neutral Sentiment: News that APA Solar is expanding a manufacturing campus in Northwest Ohio is positive for that business line but appears peripheral to APA Corporation’s core oil & gas operations; impact on APA Corp. is uncertain. APA Solar expands manufacturing campus
• Negative Sentiment: Zacks published that “APA stock sinks as market gains” — the headline and coverage indicate the stock declined today despite analyst target upgrades, suggesting profit-taking, short-term rotation, or sector-level forces outweighed positive fundamental/target revisions. APA Stock Sinks As Market Gains

APA Company Profile

APA Corporation (NASDAQ: APA) is an independent exploration and production company engaged in the acquisition, development and production of oil and natural gas resources. The company operates through three core regions: the United States, Egypt and the North Sea. Through its integrated approach, APA combines geological and geophysical expertise with technical innovation to identify and develop hydrocarbons in both onshore and offshore settings.

In the United States, APA’s largest position is in the Permian Basin of West Texas and southeastern New Mexico, where it holds substantial acreage dedicated to oil-focused drilling and production.