MSFT and 4 Other Companies Just Increased Their Dividends

3. APA Corporation (NASDAQ:APA)

Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 36

APA Corporation (NASDAQ:APA) is a Texas-based holding company that is engaged in the exploration of hydrocarbon. The company derives its revenues from the operation of energy infrastructure assets and businesses. On September 14, it declared a 100% growth in its quarterly dividend to $0.25 per share. In addition to this, the company also approved 40 million shares of additional repurchase authorization. The stock has a yield of 2.52%, as recorded on September 21.

In Q2 2022, APA Corporation (NASDAQ:APA) posted revenue of $3.05 billion, up 73.3% from the same period last year. The company’s operating cash flow for the quarter came in at $1.5 billion, compared with $891 million in the previous quarter. Its free cash flow also jumped to $1.1 billion, from $512 million a quarter earlier. If recent strip prices hold, the company expects to generate over $3 billion in free cash flow in FY22.

In September, Truist lifted its price target on APA Corporation (NASDAQ:APA) to $75 and maintained a Buy rating on the shares. The firm believes that the stock’s outperformance is expected to continue due to its diversified operations and growth in free cash flows.

As of the close of Q2 2022, 36 hedge funds tracked by Insider Monkey reported owning stakes in APA Corporation (NASDAQ:APA), down from 46 in the previous quarter. These stakes are collectively worth over $745 million. Harris Associates was the company’s largest stakeholder in Q2.

Oakmark Funds mentioned APA Corporation (NASDAQ:APA) in its Q1 2022 investor letter. Here is what the firm has to say:

“Our oil holding, APA Corporation (NASDAQ:APA) (+54%) was one of our top contributors in the quarter as oil prices rallied due to tight supplies, which were then exacerbated by the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Although their share prices have increased considerably, both companies still look quite undervalued even using longer term oil prices in the $65-70 dollar range. Meanwhile, if times are good over the next couple of years, we expect these companies to return significant percentages of their market caps to shareholders.”