Empyrean Capital Partners LP Invests $6.03 Million in APA Corporation $APA

Empyrean Capital Partners LP purchased a new stake in APA Corporation (NASDAQ:APA) in the first quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor purchased 142,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,026,000.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC raised its stake in APA by 71.0% in the fourth quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 185,818 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,437,000 after buying an additional 77,125 shares during the period. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC boosted its stake in shares of APA by 57.5% during the 4th quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 306,195 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,765,000 after acquiring an additional 111,777 shares during the period. Friedenthal Financial acquired a new position in shares of APA during the 4th quarter worth approximately $938,000. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans increased its holdings in shares of APA by 85.2% during the 4th quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 80,815 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,976,000 after acquiring an additional 37,180 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank raised its stake in APA by 59.4% in the 4th quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 112,895 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,761,000 after acquiring an additional 42,068 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.01% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

APA has been the topic of a number of research reports. Sanford C. Bernstein upped their price target on shares of APA from $37.00 to $40.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 20th. Susquehanna decreased their target price on APA from $47.00 to $45.00 and set a “positive” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, July 21st. Scotiabank increased their target price on APA from $26.00 to $36.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 22nd. Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their price target on APA from $29.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 8th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on APA from $21.00 to $39.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 9th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eighteen have issued a Hold rating and four have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $40.35.

APA Trading Down 3.9%

Shares of APA stock opened at $34.74 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.92, a quick ratio of 0.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58. The stock has a market cap of $12.28 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.10 and a beta of 0.35. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $35.45 and a 200 day simple moving average of $34.06. APA Corporation has a 1 year low of $17.86 and a 1 year high of $45.66.

APA (NASDAQ:APA) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 6th. The company reported $1.38 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.11 by $0.27. The firm had revenue of $2.33 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.13 billion. APA had a return on equity of 20.70% and a net margin of 17.38%.The company’s revenue was down 11.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.06 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that APA Corporation will post 4.92 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

APA Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 21st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, July 22nd will be issued a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, July 22nd. APA’s dividend payout ratio is 23.31%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, VP Mark D. Maddox sold 9,800 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $40.04, for a total transaction of $392,392.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president owned 66,810 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,675,072.40. This represents a 12.79% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 0.73% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

APA Company Profile

APA Corporation (NASDAQ: APA) is an independent exploration and production company engaged in the acquisition, development and production of oil and natural gas resources. The company operates through three core regions: the United States, Egypt and the North Sea. Through its integrated approach, APA combines geological and geophysical expertise with technical innovation to identify and develop hydrocarbons in both onshore and offshore settings.

In the United States, APA’s largest position is in the Permian Basin of West Texas and southeastern New Mexico, where it holds substantial acreage dedicated to oil-focused drilling and production.