Sifting through countless of stocks in the Oil, Gas & Consumable Fuels industry can be tedious, and sometimes two stocks are just too similar to judge which is the better investment. If you’re on the fence about investing in APA Corporation, Plains All American Pipeline or L.P. because you’re not sure how they measure up, it’s important to compare them on a few factors before making your decision.
Read on to learn how APA Corporation, Plains All American Pipeline and L.P. compare based on key financial metrics to determine which better meets your investment needs.
About APA Corporation, Plains All American Pipeline and L.P.
APA Corporation, an independent energy company, explores for, develops, and produces natural gas, crude oil, and natural gas liquids. The company has oil and gas operations in the United States, Egypt, and North Sea. It also has exploration and appraisal activities in Suriname, as well as holds interests in projects located in Uruguay and internationally. APA Corporation was incorporated in 1954 and is headquartered in Houston, Texas.
Plains All American Pipeline, L.P., through its subsidiaries, engages in the pipeline transportation, terminalling, storage, and gathering of crude oil and natural gas liquids (NGL) in the United States and Canada. The company operates through two segments, Crude Oil and NGL. The Crude Oil segment offers gathering and transporting crude oil through pipelines, trucks, and on barges or railcars. This segment provides terminalling, storage, and other related services, as well as merchant activities. The NGL segment is involved in natural gas processing and NGL fractionation, storage, transportation, and terminaling. This segment also includes ethane, propane, normal butane, iso-butane, and natural gasoline derived from natural gas production and processing activities, as well as crude oil refining processes. Its NGL components are used for various applications, such as heating, engine, and industrial fuels. The company was founded in 1981 and is headquartered in Houston, Texas. Plains All American Pipeline, L.P. operates as a subsidiary of Plains GP Holdings, L.P.
Latest Oil, Gas & Consumable Fuels and APA Corporation, Plains All American Pipeline, L.P. Stock News
As of August 3, 2026, APA Corporation had a $13.0 billion market capitalization, compared to the Oil, Gas & Consumable Fuels median of $2.5 million. APA Corporation’s stock is up 46.4% in 2026, up 2.5% in the previous five trading days and up 91.14% in the past year.
Currently, APA Corporation’s price-earnings ratio is 8.6. APA Corporation’s trailing 12-month revenue is $8.4 billion with a 18.3% net profit margin. Year-over-year quarterly sales growth most recently was -11.9%. Analysts expect adjusted earnings to reach $5.549 per share for the current fiscal year. APA Corporation currently has a 2.7% dividend yield.
As of August 3, 2026, Plains All American Pipeline, L.P. had a $17.1 billion market cap, putting it in the 84th percentile of all stocks. Plains All American Pipeline, L.P.’s stock is up 31.1% in 2026, down 3.6% in the previous five trading days and up 32.6% in the past year.
Currently, Plains All American Pipeline, L.P.’s price-earnings ratio is 21.8. Plains All American Pipeline, L.P.’s trailing 12-month revenue is $45.3 billion with a 2.5% net profit margin. Year-over-year quarterly sales growth most recently was 8.7%. Analysts expect adjusted earnings to reach $1.729 per share for the current fiscal year. Plains All American Pipeline, L.P. currently has a 6.9% dividend yield.
How We Compare APA Corporation, Plains All American Pipeline and L.P. Stock Grades
Stock evaluation requires access to huge amounts of data and the knowledge and time to sift through it all, make sense of financial ratios, read income statements and analyze recent stock movements. AAII created A+ Investor, a robust data suite that condenses data research in an actionable and customizable way suitable for investors of all knowledge levels, to help investors streamline and work through such data.
AAII’s proprietary stock grades come with A+ Investor. These offer intuitive A‐F grades for each of five key investing factors: value, growth, momentum, earnings estimate revisions and quality. Here, we’ll take a closer look at APA Corporation, Plains All American Pipeline and L.P.’s stock grades to see how they measure up against one another.
Learn more about A+ Investor here!
Sign Up to Receive a Free Special Report Showing How A+ Grades Can Help You Make Smarter Investment Decisions
APA Corporation, Plains All American Pipeline and L.P.’s Quality Grades
| Company | Ticker | Quality |
| APA Corporation | APA | A |
| Plains All American Pipeline, L.P. | PAA | D |
Like the Value Grade, AAII’s A+ Investor Quality Grade comes from the percentile rank of key metrics. Specifically, the Quality Score is the percentile rank of the average of the percentile ranks of return on assets (ROA), return on invested capital (ROIC), gross profit relative to assets, buyback yield, change in total liabilities to assets, accruals, Z double prime bankruptcy risk (Z) score and the F-Score.
The score is variable, meaning it can consider all eight measures or, should any of the eight measures not be valid, the remaining measures that are valid. To be assigned a Quality Score, stocks must have a valid (non-null) measure and corresponding ranking for at least four of the eight quality measures.
The Quality Score is used to assess the underlying “quality” of a particular stock. A higher-quality stock possesses traits associated with upside potential and reduced downside risk. Backtesting of the Quality Grade shows that stocks with higher grades, on average, outperformed stocks with lower grades over the period of 1998 through 2019.
Stocks receive better grades (higher scores) for having higher scores for the quality subcomponents and worse grades (lower scores) for lower scores for the subcomponents.
APA Corporation has a Quality Score of 98, which is Very Strong.
Plains All American Pipeline, L.P. has a Quality Score of 33, which is Weak.
The Quality Grade Winner: APA Corporation
As you can clearly see from the Quality Grade breakdown above, APA Corporation has a better overall quality grade than Plains All American Pipeline, L.P.. For investors who are looking for companies with higher quality than others in the same industry, APA Corporation could be a good stock to add to their portfolios. However, it’s important for investors to analyze multiple factors based on a wide range of metrics before deciding whether to buy.
APA Corporation, Plains All American Pipeline and L.P.’s Momentum Grades
| Company | Ticker | Momentum |
| APA Corporation | APA | A |
| Plains All American Pipeline, L.P. | PAA | B |
Momentum grades help to uncover stocks experiencing anomalously high rates of return; research finds that stocks with high relative levels of momentum tend to outperform, whereas those with low levels of momentum tend to continue underperforming. Momentum is based on the price change of a stock over a specified period relative to all other stocks.
Typically, AAII looks at the weighted relative strength over the trailing four quarters. The weighted four-quarter relative strength rank is the relative price change for each of the past four quarters. The most recent quarterly price change is given a weight of 40% and each of the three previous quarters are given a weighting of 20%.
APA Corporation has a Momentum Score of 82, which is Very Strong.
Plains All American Pipeline, L.P. has a Momentum Score of 63, which is Strong.
The Momentum Grade Winner: APA Corporation
As you can clearly see from the Momentum Grade breakdown above, APA Corporation is considered to have stronger momentum compared to Plains All American Pipeline, L.P.. For those specifically looking for companies that have stronger momentum compared to other companies in the same industry, APA Corporation could be a good stock to invest in. However, it’s important for investors to analyze multiple factors based on a wide range of metrics before deciding whether to buy.
APA Corporation, Plains All American Pipeline and L.P.’s Estimate Revisions Grades
| Company | Ticker | Earnings Estimate |
| APA Corporation | APA | D |
| Plains All American Pipeline, L.P. | PAA | D |
Earnings estimate revisions scores consider the magnitude of a company’s earnings surprise in its last two reported fiscal quarters. Often, positive surprises beget further positive surprises‐or at least continued sales growth (the exact opposite is generally true, too).
Estimate revisions offer an indication of what analysts are thinking about the short-term prospects of a firm. Estimate revisions are based on the statistical significance of a firm’s last two quarterly earnings surprises and the percentage change in its consensus estimate for the current fiscal year over the past month and past three months.
APA Corporation has a Earnings Estimate Score of 37, which is Negative.
Plains All American Pipeline, L.P. has a Earnings Estimate Score of 24, which is Negative.
The Earnings Estimate Revisions Stock Winner: No Clear Winner
Neither APA Corporation, Plains All American Pipeline or L.P. has an Earnings Estimate Revisions Grade that could be considered a “winner.” Investors considering these companies should do additional due diligence and research to see if either could be a good addition to their portfolios. It’s important to look at a wide range of financial metrics in order to determine if APA Corporation, Plains All American Pipeline or L.P. is the better investment when it comes to estimate revisions.
Don’t Forget Your Free Special Report on How A+ Grades Can Help You Make Investment Decisions
Other APA Corporation, Plains All American Pipeline and L.P. Grades
In addition to Momentum, Quality and Estimate Revisions, A+ Investor also provides grades for Value and Growth.
Growth investing builds on the idea that stocks of companies exhibiting strong, consistent and prolonged growth outperform those of slower-growth companies. AAII measures growth through consistency of annual sales growth, five-year sales growth rankings adjusted for extreme levels, and consistency of positive annual cash from operations.
Successful stock investing involves buying low and selling high, so stock valuation is an important consideration for stock selection. Buying stocks that are going to go up typically means buying stocks that are undervalued in the first place, although momentum investors may argue that point.
These 2 key factors, when combined with the above, provide a holistic view into a particular stock. Further, by joining A+ Investor you can see whether APA Corporation, Plains All American Pipeline and L.P. pass any of our 60+ stock screens that have outperformed the market since their creation.
So, Which Is the Better Investment, APA Corporation, Plains All American Pipeline or L.P. Stock?
Overall, APA Corporation stock has a Momentum Score of 82, Estimate Revisions Score of 37 and Quality Score of 98.
Plains All American Pipeline, L.P. stock has a Momentum Score of 63, Estimate Revisions Score of 24 and Quality Score of 33.
Comparing APA Corporation, Plains All American Pipeline and L.P.’s grades, scores and metrics can act as a solid basis to determine whether they may be a good investment or not. You’ll also want to look at your portfolio’s asset allocation as well as your risk tolerance and financial goals to see if either of these stocks would make a good fit for you. AAII can help you figure out which investments align with your individual needs and preferences.
Investors are encouraged to do their own due diligence and research. In this way, individuals can effectively become managers of their own assets‐without having to rely on others for financial independence. You can count on AAII for timeless articles on financial planning and stock-picking, unbiased research and actionable analysis.
A+ Investor adds to our qualitative teaching with a powerful data suite to help you whittle down investment choices to find stocks, exchange-traded funds (ETFs) or mutual funds that meet your needs.
AAII Disclaimer
We make no representations or warranties that any investor will, or is likely to, achieve profits similar to those shown, because past, hypothetical or simulated performance is not necessarily indicative of future results. Before making an investment decision, you should consider your circumstances and whether the information on our content is applicable to your situation. This information was prepared in good faith, and we accept no liability for any errors or omissions. The full disclaimer can be read here.
Included With AAII Platinum
Yield Screen: 8.7% Compared to S&P 500
at only 6.9%
Since Inception. Data as of 12/31/2024.
769.3% Stock Superstars Portfolio Total Return Since Inception
U.S. Index ETF (IYY)
SSR Group 3 O'Shaughnessy portfolio has a 411.2% gain since inception performance compared to IYY at only 119.1%% Performance as of 11/29/24.
FREE REPORT
BECOME A MEMBER FOR ONLY $2
Get access to powerful investment discovery tools and a wealth of investment education to help you achieve your financial goals.