JPMorgan Chase & Co. Cuts APA (NASDAQ:APA) Price Target to $20.00

APA (NASDAQ:APA) had its price target reduced by JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $23.00 to $20.00 in a research note released on Thursday,Benzinga reports. They currently have a neutral rating on the stock.

A number of other brokerages also recently issued reports on APA. Wells Fargo & Company downgraded shares of APA from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and cut their price target for the company from $42.00 to $25.00 in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. Raymond James cut shares of APA from a “strong-buy” rating to an “outperform” rating and decreased their price target for the stock from $45.00 to $32.00 in a research note on Monday, March 10th. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their price target on shares of APA from $25.00 to $22.00 and set a “sell” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 3rd. Citigroup decreased their target price on shares of APA from $29.00 to $24.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, November 26th. Finally, Mizuho cut their price target on shares of APA from $25.00 to $24.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, December 16th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have assigned a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, APA has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $28.90.

APA Trading Up 3.0 %

Shares of APA stock opened at $19.61 on Thursday. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $22.29 and a 200-day simple moving average of $23.33. APA has a 12-month low of $17.66 and a 12-month high of $36.05. The company has a current ratio of 1.24, a quick ratio of 1.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03. The stock has a market cap of $7.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 2.77 and a beta of 3.26.

APA (NASDAQ:APA) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 26th. The company reported $0.79 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.97 by ($0.18). The business had revenue of $2.50 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.31 billion. APA had a net margin of 24.36% and a return on equity of 27.86%. On average, equities analysts forecast that APA will post 4.03 EPS for the current fiscal year.

APA Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 22nd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 22nd will be issued a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.10%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 22nd. APA’s dividend payout ratio is presently 44.25%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On APA

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. raised its stake in shares of APA by 1,087.9% during the fourth quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. now owns 1,176 shares of the company’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 1,077 shares in the last quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC raised its holdings in APA by 84.1% during the 3rd quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC now owns 1,182 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 540 shares during the period. Riverview Trust Co raised its holdings in APA by 5,718.2% during the 4th quarter. Riverview Trust Co now owns 1,280 shares of the company’s stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 1,258 shares during the period. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB grew its stake in APA by 77.9% during the 4th quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 1,338 shares of the company’s stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 586 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Runnymede Capital Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in APA during the 4th quarter valued at about $35,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.01% of the company’s stock.

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.