APA Co. (NASDAQ:APA) Shares Sold by Cullen Investment Group LTD.

Cullen Investment Group LTD. lessened its stake in shares of APA Co. (NASDAQ:APA) by 27.5% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 12,060 shares of the company’s stock after selling 4,582 shares during the quarter. Cullen Investment Group LTD.’s holdings in APA were worth $278,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Woodstock Corp lifted its position in shares of APA by 20.3% during the 3rd quarter. Woodstock Corp now owns 308,253 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,540,000 after buying an additional 51,993 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of APA by 4.2% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 11,991,513 shares of the company’s stock worth $293,312,000 after buying an additional 485,291 shares during the last quarter. HITE Hedge Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in APA in the 3rd quarter valued at $7,238,000. Victory Capital Management Inc. raised its position in APA by 13.5% in the 3rd quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,261,324 shares of the company’s stock valued at $30,852,000 after purchasing an additional 149,762 shares during the last quarter. Finally, PVG Asset Management Corp purchased a new stake in APA in the 3rd quarter valued at $757,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.01% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently commented on APA shares. Piper Sandler reduced their price target on shares of APA from $26.00 to $23.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their price target on shares of APA from $25.00 to $22.00 and set a “sell” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 3rd. Truist Financial cut their price objective on shares of APA from $36.00 to $33.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, November 8th. Citigroup cut their price objective on shares of APA from $29.00 to $24.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, November 26th. Finally, Bernstein Bank cut their price objective on shares of APA from $30.00 to $28.00 in a research report on Friday, October 18th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have issued a hold rating, four have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $30.55.

APA Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ APA opened at $24.85 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $9.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 3.51 and a beta of 3.16. APA Co. has a 52 week low of $20.32 and a 52 week high of $36.04. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $22.47 and its 200 day moving average price is $25.61. The company has a current ratio of 1.24, a quick ratio of 1.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03.

APA Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 21st. Investors of record on Wednesday, January 22nd will be paid a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, January 22nd. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.02%. APA’s payout ratio is 14.12%.

Insider Activity at APA

In other APA news, Director Juliet S. Ellis acquired 4,391 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 12th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $22.78 per share, with a total value of $100,026.98. Following the purchase, the director now owns 12,436 shares in the company, valued at approximately $283,292.08. The trade was a 54.58 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 1.30% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.