Bank of Nova Scotia Has $1.51 Million Holdings in APA Co. (NASDAQ:APA)

Bank of Nova Scotia boosted its holdings in shares of APA Co. (NASDAQ:APA) by 38.4% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 65,577 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 18,182 shares during the quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia’s holdings in APA were worth $1,514,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of APA. MML Investors Services LLC acquired a new position in APA in the 3rd quarter valued at $214,000. M&T Bank Corp boosted its holdings in APA by 187.5% during the third quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 56,281 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,377,000 after acquiring an additional 36,707 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in APA by 2.5% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 9,307,186 shares of the company’s stock valued at $226,928,000 after acquiring an additional 224,547 shares during the period. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. grew its position in shares of APA by 23.6% in the third quarter. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. now owns 12,162 shares of the company’s stock valued at $296,000 after purchasing an additional 2,325 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sunbelt Securities Inc. increased its stake in shares of APA by 83.7% in the third quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. now owns 4,907 shares of the company’s stock worth $120,000 after purchasing an additional 2,236 shares during the period. 83.01% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

APA Trading Up 3.0 %

Shares of APA stock opened at $15.04 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.48 billion, a P/E ratio of 2.12 and a beta of 2.74. APA Co. has a 12-month low of $13.58 and a 12-month high of $33.88. The company has a quick ratio of 1.24, a current ratio of 1.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $20.09 and a 200 day simple moving average of $22.26.

APA (NASDAQ:APA) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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). The firm had revenue of $2.50 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.31 billion. APA had a return on equity of 27.86% and a net margin of 24.36%. Research analysts expect that APA Co. will post 4.03 earnings per share 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 issued a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.65%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 22nd. APA’s payout ratio is presently 44.25%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

APA has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Barclays lowered their target price on APA from $27.00 to $25.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, March 18th. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “sell” rating and set a $23.00 target price on shares of APA in a research report on Wednesday, March 19th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on shares of APA from $25.00 to $23.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, March 26th. Susquehanna decreased their price target on shares of APA from $33.00 to $31.00 and set a “positive” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, March 3rd. Finally, Citigroup cut their price objective on shares of APA from $24.00 to $20.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, March 17th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have issued a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $26.58.

About APA

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.