MUFG analyst Michael McAllister raised his price target on Apache to $56 and kept his Overweight rating after its Q1 results, saying the company's production rose for the 3rd straight quarter on sequential basis. The analyst notes that as his two year estimates roll forward, he sees valuation on the stock at 6.0-times enterprise value to EBITDA at a discount to the group average of 7.5.times. While the discount is justified given the "still-nascent state of the Alpine High play", the analyst is positive on the company's "assurance" for all three of its production streams.

Piper Sandler raised the firm's price target on APA Corp. to $35 from $33 and keeps a Neutral rating on the shares as part of a Q1 preview for the exploration and production group. Energy has been hot, almost too hot, as $90 crude potentially cools the pace of consolidation and investors looking for ways to play the data center and power demand theme turn to gas equities, the analyst tells investors in a research note. The firm adjusted oil and gas price assumptions, expecting crude pricing to remain strong through Q3 and gas pricing pressure to persist through the balance of fiscal 2024.