Zacks Research Weighs in on APA’s Q1 Earnings (NASDAQ:APA)

APA Corporation (NASDAQ:APA) – Equities research analysts at Zacks Research decreased their Q1 2026 earnings per share (EPS) estimates for shares of APA in a note issued to investors on Monday, December 15th. Zacks Research analyst Team now anticipates that the company will post earnings per share of $0.56 for the quarter, down from their previous forecast of $0.60. The consensus estimate for APA’s current full-year earnings is $4.03 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for APA’s Q2 2026 earnings at $0.53 EPS, Q4 2026 earnings at $0.53 EPS, FY2026 earnings at $2.16 EPS, Q1 2027 earnings at $0.56 EPS, Q2 2027 earnings at $0.55 EPS, Q3 2027 earnings at $0.55 EPS and FY2027 earnings at $2.15 EPS.

Several other research analysts have also issued reports on the stock. Wolfe Research raised their price target on shares of APA from $35.00 to $37.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, October 20th. Roth Capital increased their price objective on shares of APA from $22.00 to $23.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 15th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on shares of APA from $28.00 to $26.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, December 8th. Mizuho boosted their target price on shares of APA from $20.00 to $22.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a report on Friday. Finally, Stephens upped their price target on shares of APA from $22.00 to $23.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 6th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, sixteen have given a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $26.73.

APA Price Performance

APA stock opened at $23.96 on Wednesday. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $24.12 and its 200 day moving average is $22.00. APA has a one year low of $13.58 and a one year high of $27.72. The firm has a market cap of $8.50 billion, a P/E ratio of 5.76, a P/E/G ratio of 6.81 and a beta of 0.75. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a current ratio of 0.78 and a quick ratio of 0.78.

APA (NASDAQ:APA) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 5th. The company reported $0.93 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.74 by $0.19. The firm had revenue of $2.12 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.06 billion. APA had a return on equity of 19.86% and a net margin of 15.49%.The business’s revenue was down 16.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.00 EPS.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On APA

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Prudential Financial Inc. increased its stake in APA by 38.8% in the 2nd quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. now owns 284,275 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,199,000 after buying an additional 79,451 shares during the last quarter. Pacific Heights Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of APA by 33.3% in the second quarter. Pacific Heights Asset Management LLC now owns 400,000 shares of the company’s stock valued at $7,316,000 after acquiring an additional 100,000 shares in the last quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp increased its position in shares of APA by 98.7% during the second quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 51,924 shares of the company’s stock valued at $950,000 after acquiring an additional 25,787 shares during the last quarter. Lynx Investment Advisory purchased a new stake in shares of APA during the first quarter valued at approximately $415,000. Finally, Schroder Investment Management Group lifted its holdings in APA by 22.0% during the second quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group now owns 914,667 shares of the company’s stock worth $16,729,000 after acquiring an additional 165,006 shares during the period. 83.01% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

APA Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 23rd. Investors of record on Thursday, January 22nd will be paid a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, January 22nd. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.2%. APA’s dividend payout ratio is currently 24.04%.

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.