Horizon Advisory Services Inc. Buys Shares of 12,693 APA Co. (NASDAQ:APA)

Horizon Advisory Services Inc. bought a new stake in shares of APA Co. (NASDAQ:APA) in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm bought 12,693 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $293,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its stake in shares of APA by 29.4% in the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 4,092,666 shares of the company’s stock worth $94,500,000 after acquiring an additional 929,770 shares during the period. Rothschild Investment LLC lifted its stake in shares of APA by 86.8% in the 4th quarter. Rothschild Investment LLC now owns 2,087 shares of the company’s stock worth $48,000 after acquiring an additional 970 shares during the period. South Dakota Investment Council lifted its stake in shares of APA by 96.6% in the 4th quarter. South Dakota Investment Council now owns 774,245 shares of the company’s stock worth $17,877,000 after acquiring an additional 380,510 shares during the period. Howard Capital Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of APA by 13.3% in the 4th quarter. Howard Capital Management Inc. now owns 88,310 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,039,000 after acquiring an additional 10,394 shares during the period. Finally, Transcend Capital Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of APA by 6.6% in the 4th quarter. Transcend Capital Advisors LLC now owns 10,449 shares of the company’s stock worth $241,000 after acquiring an additional 643 shares during the period. 83.01% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

APA has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company lowered shares of APA from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and reduced their price target for the stock from $42.00 to $25.00 in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. Truist Financial reduced their price target on shares of APA from $36.00 to $33.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, November 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on shares of APA from $29.00 to $25.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. Piper Sandler cut their target price on shares of APA from $26.00 to $23.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. Finally, Mizuho cut their target price on shares of APA from $25.00 to $24.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, December 16th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have issued a hold rating, four have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, APA presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $30.65.

APA Stock Up 0.4 %

APA stock opened at $22.87 on Tuesday. APA Co. has a 52-week low of $20.32 and a 52-week high of $36.04. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $22.94 and its 200-day simple moving average is $24.19. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03, a current ratio of 1.24 and a quick ratio of 1.24. The firm has a market capitalization of $8.46 billion, a P/E ratio of 3.23 and a beta of 3.15.

APA Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 22nd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 22nd will be paid a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 22nd. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.37%. APA’s dividend payout ratio is presently 14.12%.

Insider Buying and Selling at APA

In related news, Director Juliet S. Ellis acquired 4,391 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 12th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $22.78 per share, for a total transaction of $100,026.98. Following the purchase, the director now owns 12,436 shares in the company, valued at $283,292.08. This represents a 54.58 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Company insiders own 1.30% 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.