Zacks Research Issues Pessimistic Outlook for APA Earnings

APA Co. (NASDAQ:APA) – Research analysts at Zacks Research cut their Q2 2026 earnings per share estimates for APA in a research report issued to clients and investors on Monday, April 7th. Zacks Research analyst N. Choudhury now anticipates that the company will post earnings per share of $0.79 for the quarter, down from their previous forecast of $0.80. The consensus estimate for APA’s current full-year earnings is $4.03 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for APA’s Q3 2026 earnings at $0.80 EPS, Q4 2026 earnings at $0.80 EPS, FY2026 earnings at $3.15 EPS and FY2027 earnings at $2.19 EPS.

A number of other research analysts have also recently commented on APA. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price target on APA from $27.00 to $24.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday. Citigroup dropped their target price 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. Piper Sandler reduced their price target on shares of APA from $26.00 to $23.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. Susquehanna dropped their price objective on shares of APA from $33.00 to $31.00 and set a “positive” rating for the company in a report on Monday, March 3rd. Finally, Raymond James lowered APA from a “strong-buy” rating to an “outperform” rating and cut their price objective for the company from $45.00 to $32.00 in a research report on Monday, March 10th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have issued a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $26.58.

APA Price Performance

NASDAQ:APA opened at $15.04 on Thursday. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $20.09 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $22.27. APA has a 52 week low of $13.58 and a 52 week high of $35.25. The stock has a market cap of $5.48 billion, a PE ratio of 2.12 and a beta of 2.74. The company has a quick ratio of 1.24, a current ratio of 1.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03.

APA (NASDAQ:APA) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 26th. The company reported $0.79 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.97 by ($0.18). The firm had revenue of $2.50 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.31 billion. APA had a return on equity of 27.86% and a net margin of 24.36%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On APA

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Woodstock Corp boosted its position in shares of APA by 10.2% during the first quarter. Woodstock Corp now owns 267,035 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,613,000 after buying an additional 24,692 shares during the period. Czech National Bank boosted its holdings in APA by 5.9% during the 1st quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 84,971 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,786,000 after acquiring an additional 4,759 shares during the period. Rhumbline Advisers boosted its holdings in APA by 11.1% during the 1st quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 694,238 shares of the company’s stock valued at $14,593,000 after acquiring an additional 69,519 shares during the period. Investors Research Corp grew its position in APA by 30.0% in the 1st quarter. Investors Research Corp now owns 47,357 shares of the company’s stock valued at $995,000 after acquiring an additional 10,921 shares during the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC increased its stake in APA by 3,303.0% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 268,194 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,637,000 after purchasing an additional 260,313 shares during the period. 83.01% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

APA Announces Dividend

The company 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 $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 22nd. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.65%. APA’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 44.25%.

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.