Fifth Third Bancorp Raises Holdings in APA Co. (NASDAQ:APA)

Fifth Third Bancorp raised its position in APA Co. (NASDAQ:APA) by 35.1% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 22,831 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 5,928 shares during the period. Fifth Third Bancorp’s holdings in APA were worth $527,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Sei Investments Co. lifted its stake in shares of APA by 1.4% in the second quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 85,203 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,507,000 after buying an additional 1,140 shares in the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company raised its holdings in APA by 23.1% in the 2nd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 293,268 shares of the company’s stock valued at $8,634,000 after acquiring an additional 54,985 shares during the last quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp raised its holdings in APA by 10.4% in the 2nd quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 28,009 shares of the company’s stock valued at $825,000 after acquiring an additional 2,638 shares during the last quarter. Creative Planning lifted its stake in APA by 70.3% in the 2nd quarter. Creative Planning now owns 63,625 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,873,000 after purchasing an additional 26,260 shares in the last quarter. Finally, NewEdge Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of APA by 1.1% during the 2nd quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 46,603 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,372,000 after purchasing an additional 521 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.01% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages recently commented on APA. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their price objective on APA from $25.00 to $22.00 and set a “sell” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 3rd. Citigroup lowered their price target 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. Barclays cut their price objective on shares of APA from $30.00 to $27.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, November 8th. Susquehanna dropped their price target on shares of APA from $52.00 to $48.00 and set a “positive” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, October 18th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and set a $32.00 price target on shares of APA in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have assigned a hold rating, four have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $30.65.

Insider Transactions at APA

In other APA news, Director Juliet S. Ellis bought 4,391 shares of APA stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 12th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $22.78 per share, for a total transaction of $100,026.98. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 12,436 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $283,292.08. The trade was a 54.58 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Company insiders own 1.30% of the company’s stock.

APA Stock Down 0.8 %

Shares of NASDAQ APA opened at $22.99 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $8.51 billion, a PE ratio of 3.25 and a beta of 3.16. The company has a quick ratio of 1.24, a current ratio of 1.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $22.85 and a 200-day moving average of $25.18. APA Co. has a 52-week low of $20.32 and a 52-week high of $36.04.

APA Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 21st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, January 22nd will be paid a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, January 22nd. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.35%. APA’s dividend payout ratio is presently 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.