Townsquare Capital LLC Makes New Investment in APA Co. (NASDAQ:APA)

Townsquare Capital LLC bought a new stake in APA Co. (NASDAQ:APA) during the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 9,427 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $231,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in APA. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in APA by 4.2% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 11,991,513 shares of the company’s stock valued at $293,312,000 after buying an additional 485,291 shares during the last quarter. Smead Capital Management Inc. raised its position in shares of APA by 3.5% during the 3rd quarter. Smead Capital Management Inc. now owns 9,667,452 shares of the company’s stock valued at $236,466,000 after acquiring an additional 326,042 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its stake in APA by 131.7% during the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 4,813,655 shares of the company’s stock worth $141,704,000 after purchasing an additional 2,736,041 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its holdings in APA by 15.7% in the second quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 3,358,192 shares of the company’s stock worth $98,865,000 after purchasing an additional 455,312 shares during the period. Finally, LSV Asset Management increased its stake in APA by 4.9% during the second quarter. LSV Asset Management now owns 2,757,900 shares of the company’s stock valued at $81,193,000 after purchasing an additional 129,841 shares during the last quarter. 83.01% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

APA has been the subject of several research reports. Bernstein Bank decreased their price target on shares of APA from $30.00 to $28.00 in a report on Friday, October 18th. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their target price on APA from $26.00 to $25.00 in a research note on Friday, October 18th. Truist Financial dropped their price target on APA from $36.00 to $33.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, November 8th. Evercore ISI reduced their price objective on APA from $39.00 to $33.00 and set an “in-line” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, September 30th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on APA from $49.00 to $47.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have given a hold rating, five have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $32.57.

APA Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:APA opened at $21.42 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $7.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 3.03 and a beta of 3.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03, a current ratio of 1.24 and a quick ratio of 1.24. APA Co. has a 12 month low of $20.95 and a 12 month high of $37.82. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $23.84 and its 200 day moving average price is $26.83.

APA Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 22nd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, October 22nd were issued a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, October 22nd. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.67%. APA’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 14.12%.

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.