Schlumberger Limited (NYSE:SLB) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Analysts

Shares of Schlumberger Limited (NYSE:SLB) have been assigned a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the twenty-one brokerages that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat reports. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. The average 12-month price target among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $58.79.

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their target price on Schlumberger from $60.00 to $59.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, December 23rd. Susquehanna cut their price objective on Schlumberger from $60.00 to $56.00 and set a “positive” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, October 21st. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $69.00 price target on shares of Schlumberger in a research note on Thursday, October 3rd. UBS Group dropped their price target on Schlumberger from $63.00 to $57.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, September 18th. Finally, Evercore ISI lowered their price objective on Schlumberger from $74.00 to $62.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, October 21st.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Abdellah Merad sold 60,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $41.90, for a total transaction of $2,514,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 211,937 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,880,160.30. This trade represents a 22.06 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.26% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. ORG Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Schlumberger by 393.5% during the 3rd quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 607 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 484 shares during the period. Prospera Private Wealth LLC bought a new position in shares of Schlumberger in the third quarter valued at about $29,000. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC bought a new stake in Schlumberger during the 3rd quarter worth about $37,000. DiNuzzo Private Wealth Inc. increased its position in Schlumberger by 1,068.3% in the 3rd quarter. DiNuzzo Private Wealth Inc. now owns 958 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $40,000 after acquiring an additional 876 shares in the last quarter. Finally, J. Stern & Co. LLP acquired a new position in shares of Schlumberger during the third quarter worth approximately $47,000. 81.99% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Schlumberger Stock Performance

SLB stock opened at $38.34 on Wednesday. Schlumberger has a 12-month low of $36.52 and a 12-month high of $55.69. The company has a current ratio of 1.48, a quick ratio of 1.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $41.32 and its 200 day simple moving average is $43.44. The stock has a market capitalization of $54.14 billion, a PE ratio of 12.33, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 1.51.

Schlumberger (NYSE:SLB) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, October 18th. The oil and gas company reported $0.89 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.88 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $9.16 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.27 billion. Schlumberger had a net margin of 12.44% and a return on equity of 21.84%. The company’s revenue was up 10.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.78 EPS. As a group, research analysts forecast that Schlumberger will post 3.39 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Schlumberger Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 9th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, December 4th will be paid a $0.275 dividend. This represents a $1.10 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.87%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, December 4th. Schlumberger’s dividend payout ratio is presently 35.37%.

Schlumberger Company Profile

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.