Core Laboratories (NYSE:CLB) Shares Gap Down – Here’s What Happened

Core Laboratories Inc. (NYSE:CLB) gapped down prior to trading on Thursday . The stock had previously closed at $18.54, but opened at $17.36. Core Laboratories shares last traded at $18.27, with a volume of 37,468 shares changing hands.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently commented on CLB shares. StockNews.com upgraded Core Laboratories from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. Citigroup reduced their price target on shares of Core Laboratories from $15.00 to $14.00 and set a “sell” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and three have given a hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Core Laboratories has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $17.00.

Core Laboratories Stock Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $815.76 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.72, a PEG ratio of 1.14 and a beta of 2.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a current ratio of 2.48 and a quick ratio of 1.79. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $19.00 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $19.49.

Core Laboratories (NYSE:CLB) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The oil and gas company reported $0.23 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.23. Core Laboratories had a return on equity of 15.84% and a net margin of 5.83%. As a group, analysts anticipate that Core Laboratories Inc. will post 0.8 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Trading of Core Laboratories

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company boosted its position in shares of Core Laboratories by 3.3% in the 2nd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 18,054 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $366,000 after buying an additional 579 shares in the last quarter. Creative Planning lifted its holdings in shares of Core Laboratories by 38.3% in the second quarter. Creative Planning now owns 54,891 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $1,114,000 after purchasing an additional 15,196 shares in the last quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. increased its stake in shares of Core Laboratories by 11.9% during the 2nd quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 5,636 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $114,000 after purchasing an additional 600 shares in the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC lifted its stake in Core Laboratories by 184.6% in the 3rd quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 69,740 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $1,292,000 after buying an additional 45,232 shares in the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC grew its holdings in Core Laboratories by 33.0% during the 3rd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 5,885 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $109,000 after buying an additional 1,460 shares during the last quarter. 97.81% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Core Laboratories

Core Laboratories Inc provides reservoir description and production enhancement services and products to the oil and gas industry in the United States, and internationally. It operates through Reservoir Description and Production Enhancement segments. The Reservoir Description segment includes the characterization of petroleum reservoir rock and reservoir fluid samples to enhance production and improve recovery of crude oil and gas from its clients' reservoirs.