Shale producer APA gains after Q2 profit beat

** Shares of oil producer APA Corp APA.O rise 8% to $19.47

** Co on Wednesday beat second-quarter profit estimates on the back of stronger natural gas production in Egypt and higher prices

** APA posted Q2 adjusted profit of 87 cents per share vs analysts' average estimate of 48 cents per share — LSEG

** APA adds it secured presidential approval for about 2 million additional acres in Egypt, unlocking significant oil and gas potential; it plans to start drilling by year-end

** "It appears operations are starting to improve in both the Permian and Egypt. Overall, we expect this update to be a slight positive for APA shares," Scott Hanold, RBC Capital Markets

** Including session's moves, APA shares down 15.5% YTD