Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund Grows Stake in APA Corporation $APA

Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund boosted its holdings in shares of APA Corporation (NASDAQ:APA) by 51.0% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 329,068 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 111,204 shares during the quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund owned about 0.09% of APA worth $13,966,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Cedar Mountain Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of APA during the first quarter worth $28,000. Global Assets Advisory LLC purchased a new position in APA during the first quarter valued at $44,000. Summit Securities Group LLC increased its holdings in APA by 115.1% in the 4th quarter. Summit Securities Group LLC now owns 1,327 shares of the company’s stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 710 shares during the last quarter. Camelot Portfolios LLC bought a new stake in APA in the 4th quarter valued at $37,000. Finally, Cary Street Partners Investment Advisory LLC purchased a new stake in APA in the 4th quarter worth $47,000. 83.01% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

APA Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:APA opened at $34.28 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.92, a quick ratio of 0.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58. APA Corporation has a 12 month low of $17.86 and a 12 month high of $45.66. The company has a market capitalization of $12.11 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.99 and a beta of 0.35. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $35.72 and its 200 day moving average is $33.51.

APA (NASDAQ:APA) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The company reported $1.38 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.11 by $0.27. APA had a return on equity of 20.70% and a net margin of 17.38%.The business had revenue of $2.33 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.13 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.06 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 11.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts predict that APA Corporation will post 4.98 EPS for the current year.

APA Announces Dividend

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have commented on APA. UBS Group dropped their price objective on shares of APA from $45.00 to $41.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday. Sanford C. Bernstein lifted their target price on APA from $37.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 20th. Raymond James Financial decreased their target price on APA from $57.00 to $50.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on APA from $38.00 to $41.00 in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Finally, Roth Capital upgraded APA from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price target for the company from $37.00 to $38.00 in a report on Monday, June 22nd. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eighteen have given a Hold rating and four have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, APA currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $40.42.

Insider Activity

In other news, VP Mark D. Maddox sold 9,800 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.04, for a total transaction of $392,392.00. Following the transaction, the vice president owned 66,810 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,675,072.40. This represents a 12.79% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders own 0.73% of the company’s stock.

APA 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.