Level Four Advisory Services LLC Decreases Position in APA Co. (NASDAQ:APA)

Level Four Advisory Services LLC lowered its position in APA Co. (NASDAQ:APA) by 20.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 224,092 shares of the company’s stock after selling 56,355 shares during the quarter. Level Four Advisory Services LLC owned 0.06% of APA worth $5,174,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Van ECK Associates Corp lifted its stake in APA by 0.6% in the 4th quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 77,110 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,780,000 after buying an additional 469 shares in the last quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC lifted its position in shares of APA by 84.1% in the third quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC now owns 1,182 shares of the company’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 540 shares in the last quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of APA by 0.4% during the fourth quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 138,991 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,070,000 after acquiring an additional 544 shares during the last quarter. Segment Wealth Management LLC increased its position in APA by 1.1% during the 4th quarter. Segment Wealth Management LLC now owns 54,938 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,269,000 after purchasing an additional 571 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB raised its stake in APA by 77.9% in the 4th quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 1,338 shares of the company’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 586 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.01% of the company’s stock.

APA Stock Performance

APA stock opened at $20.92 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 1.24 and a current ratio of 1.24. APA Co. has a one year low of $17.66 and a one year high of $36.05. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $21.58 and its 200 day moving average price is $22.92. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.62 billion, a PE ratio of 2.95 and a beta of 3.26.

APA (NASDAQ:APA) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 26th. The company reported $0.79 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.97 by ($0.18). APA had a net margin of 24.36% and a return on equity of 27.86%. The firm had revenue of $2.50 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.31 billion. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that APA Co. will post 4.03 EPS for the current fiscal year.

APA Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 22nd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, April 22nd will be given a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.78%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 22nd. APA’s payout ratio is 44.25%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

APA has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a “sell” rating and set a $23.00 price target on shares of APA in a report on Wednesday, March 19th. Barclays cut their price target on APA from $27.00 to $25.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, March 18th. Mizuho lowered their price objective on APA from $25.00 to $24.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, December 16th. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and set a $32.00 target price on shares of APA in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Finally, Morgan Stanley set a $22.00 price target on APA and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Wednesday. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have assigned a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $28.25.

APA 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.