Hartford Financial Management Inc. Acquires 663 Shares of APA Co. (NASDAQ:APA)

Hartford Financial Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of APA Co. (NASDAQ:APA) by 14.8% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 5,149 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 663 shares during the quarter. Hartford Financial Management Inc.’s holdings in APA were worth $119,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. TD Private Client Wealth LLC lifted its stake in shares of APA by 84.1% during the 3rd quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC now owns 1,182 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 540 shares during the last quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB raised its holdings in APA by 93.5% in the 4th quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 1,614 shares of the company’s stock valued at $37,000 after acquiring an additional 780 shares during the period. Huntington National Bank lifted its position in APA by 48.8% during the third quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 1,710 shares of the company’s stock worth $42,000 after acquiring an additional 561 shares during the last quarter. Eastern Bank grew its position in shares of APA by 355.0% in the fourth quarter. Eastern Bank now owns 2,275 shares of the company’s stock valued at $53,000 after purchasing an additional 1,775 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. increased its stake in shares of APA by 164.2% during the third quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 2,581 shares of the company’s stock worth $63,000 after purchasing an additional 1,604 shares during the period. 83.01% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Juliet S. Ellis bought 4,391 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 12th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $22.78 per share, for a total transaction of $100,026.98. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 12,436 shares in the company, valued at $283,292.08. This represents a 54.58 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 1.30% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Citigroup reduced their target price 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. Piper Sandler dropped 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. UBS Group lowered their price objective on APA from $28.00 to $27.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, December 9th. Scotiabank decreased their price target on APA from $30.00 to $27.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. Finally, Susquehanna cut their price objective on shares of APA from $52.00 to $48.00 and set a “positive” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, October 18th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have given a hold rating, four have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $30.65.

APA Trading Down 0.8 %

NASDAQ:APA opened at $22.99 on Friday. APA Co. has a 52 week low of $20.32 and a 52 week high of $36.04. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $22.85 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $25.18. The firm has a market cap of $8.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 3.25 and a beta of 3.16. 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 Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 21st. Investors of record on Wednesday, January 22nd will be issued a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, January 22nd. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.35%. APA’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 14.12%.

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.