APA (NASDAQ:APA) Sets New 52-Week Low – Should You Sell?

APA Co. (NASDAQ:APA) hit a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Friday . The stock traded as low as $21.11 and last traded at $21.16, with a volume of 1882292 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $21.84.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have issued reports on APA shares. Citigroup cut their price objective on APA from $29.00 to $24.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, November 26th. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their target price on APA from $26.00 to $25.00 in a report on Friday, October 18th. Barclays lowered their target price on APA from $30.00 to $27.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, November 8th. Scotiabank lowered their target price on APA from $30.00 to $27.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Finally, UBS Group lowered their target price on APA from $29.00 to $28.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Monday, November 18th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have issued a hold rating, five have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $32.57.

APA Trading Down 1.9 %

The stock has a market capitalization of $7.92 billion, a P/E ratio of 3.03 and a beta of 3.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 1.24 and a current ratio of 1.24. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $23.84 and a 200-day simple moving average of $26.83.

APA Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 22nd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, October 22nd were paid a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.67%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, October 22nd. APA’s dividend payout ratio is 14.12%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of APA by 12.6% in the third quarter. Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC now owns 30,471,834 shares of the company’s stock valued at $745,341,000 after acquiring an additional 3,411,270 shares during the last quarter. Harris Associates L P grew its holdings in APA by 20.8% during the 3rd quarter. Harris Associates L P now owns 24,914,700 shares of the company’s stock worth $609,414,000 after acquiring an additional 4,293,932 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in 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 acquiring an additional 485,291 shares during the period. Smead Capital Management Inc. grew its holdings in APA by 3.5% during the 3rd quarter. Smead Capital Management Inc. now owns 9,667,452 shares of the company’s stock worth $236,466,000 after acquiring an additional 326,042 shares during the period. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in APA by 2.5% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 9,307,186 shares of the company’s stock worth $226,928,000 after acquiring an additional 224,547 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 83.01% of the company’s stock.

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.