Schlumberger (NYSE:SLB) Shares Gap Down to $50.94

Schlumberger Limited (NYSE:SLB)’s share price gapped down prior to trading on Friday . The stock had previously closed at $50.94, but opened at $49.66. Schlumberger shares last traded at $49.77, with a volume of 2,417,098 shares trading hands.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have weighed in on SLB shares. HSBC restated a “buy” rating and issued a $71.00 target price on shares of Schlumberger in a research report on Thursday, April 4th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Schlumberger from $69.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, January 22nd. Barclays cut their price target on shares of Schlumberger from $74.00 to $70.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 4th. Bank of America lifted their price target on shares of Schlumberger from $62.00 to $63.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada boosted their target price on shares of Schlumberger from $66.00 to $69.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 3rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $70.31.

Schlumberger Trading Down 1.6 %

The company has a quick ratio of 1.00, a current ratio of 1.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $51.56 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $52.48. The stock has a market capitalization of $71.51 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.45, a P/E/G ratio of 0.97 and a beta of 1.60.

Schlumberger (NYSE:SLB) last posted its earnings results on Friday, April 19th. The oil and gas company reported $0.75 EPS for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.75. The company had revenue of $8.71 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.70 billion. Schlumberger had a net margin of 12.68% and a return on equity of 21.97%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.63 earnings per share. As a group, analysts forecast that Schlumberger Limited will post 3.52 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Schlumberger Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 11th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, June 5th will be given a $0.275 dividend. This represents a $1.10 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.20%. This is an increase from Schlumberger’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. Schlumberger’s dividend payout ratio is presently 37.67%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Schlumberger

In related news, CFO Stephane Biguet sold 6,250 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $52.78, for a total transaction of $329,875.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 249,182 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,151,825.96. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In other news, VP Kevin Fyfe sold 20,223 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $52.05, for a total value of $1,052,607.15. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 31,198 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,623,855.90. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CFO Stephane Biguet sold 6,250 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, January 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $52.78, for a total transaction of $329,875.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 249,182 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,151,825.96. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 172,191 shares of company stock worth $8,636,322 over the last three months. 0.26% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Schlumberger

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in Schlumberger by 1.3% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 132,281,480 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $6,883,928,000 after purchasing an additional 1,753,108 shares in the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD grew its stake in shares of Schlumberger by 12.9% in the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 75,379,848 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $3,922,768,000 after acquiring an additional 8,617,971 shares during the period. Capital World Investors grew its stake in shares of Schlumberger by 2.2% in the fourth quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 51,617,471 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $2,686,173,000 after acquiring an additional 1,133,686 shares during the period. FMR LLC grew its stake in shares of Schlumberger by 1.1% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 27,171,516 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $1,584,099,000 after acquiring an additional 282,709 shares during the period. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Schlumberger by 1.6% in the first quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 25,347,967 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $1,241,319,000 after acquiring an additional 401,606 shares during the period. 81.99% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Schlumberger

Schlumberger Limited engages in the provision of technology for the energy industry worldwide. The company operates through four divisions: Digital & Integration, Reservoir Performance, Well Construction, and Production Systems. The company provides field development and hydrocarbon production, carbon management, and integration of adjacent energy systems; reservoir interpretation and data processing services for exploration data; and well construction and production improvement services and products.