APA Co. (NASDAQ:APA) Short Interest Update

APA Co. (NASDAQ:APA) saw a large increase in short interest in the month of September. As of September 15th, there was short interest totalling 16,920,000 shares, an increase of 26.0% from the August 31st total of 13,430,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 5,590,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 3.0 days. Currently, 4.7% of the company’s shares are short sold.

APA Stock Performance

Shares of APA traded up $1.38 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $24.53. 9,083,760 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 6,250,758. The firm has a market capitalization of $9.11 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 2.74 and a beta of 3.24. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $27.56 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $29.87. APA has a twelve month low of $22.72 and a twelve month high of $43.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04, a current ratio of 1.01 and a quick ratio of 1.01.

APA (NASDAQ:APA) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The company reported $1.17 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.95 by $0.22. The firm had revenue of $2.54 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.28 billion. APA had a net margin of 32.66% and a return on equity of 35.95%. APA’s quarterly revenue was up 41.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.85 EPS. Analysts predict that APA will post 4.04 earnings per share for the current year.

APA Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 22nd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, October 22nd will be given a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, October 22nd. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.08%. APA’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 11.19%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On APA

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in APA. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its stake in shares of APA by 131.7% in the 2nd 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. Harris Associates L P grew its position in APA by 17.8% in the fourth quarter. Harris Associates L P now owns 15,705,693 shares of the company’s stock worth $563,520,000 after buying an additional 2,367,570 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of APA by 4.7% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 44,648,084 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,535,001,000 after buying an additional 2,004,555 shares in the last quarter. Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of APA by 10.6% during the 4th quarter. Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC now owns 20,299,538 shares of the company’s stock valued at $728,347,000 after acquiring an additional 1,938,335 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Webs Creek Capital Management LP bought a new stake in shares of APA during the 1st quarter worth $28,593,000. 83.01% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

APA has been the topic of a number of research reports. Barclays reissued an “equal weight” rating and issued a $35.00 target price on shares of APA in a research note on Wednesday, September 11th. Scotiabank reduced their price target on shares of APA from $37.00 to $30.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, July 12th. Wolfe Research assumed coverage on APA in a report on Thursday, July 18th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $42.00 price target for the company. Citigroup reduced their price objective on APA from $33.00 to $32.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, September 9th. Finally, Evercore ISI reiterated an “in-line” rating and set a $39.00 target price on shares of APA in a research note on Thursday, September 12th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have given a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $36.38.

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.