Schlumberger (NYSE:SLB) Stock Rating Upgraded by Sanford C. Bernstein

Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded shares of Schlumberger (NYSE:SLB) to a strong-buy rating in a research report released on Tuesday morning,Zacks.com reports.

Several other equities analysts have also commented on the company. UBS Group dropped their target price on Schlumberger from $63.00 to $57.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, September 18th. Citigroup cut their target price on Schlumberger from $60.00 to $54.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on Schlumberger from $65.00 to $60.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, September 16th. Bank of America cut their price objective on shares of Schlumberger from $58.00 to $54.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, October 14th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets dropped their target price on shares of Schlumberger from $60.00 to $58.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Schlumberger has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $60.97.

Schlumberger Stock Down 0.6 %

Schlumberger stock opened at $43.18 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $60.98 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.88, a P/E/G ratio of 1.54 and a beta of 1.52. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $42.35 and its 200-day simple moving average is $44.75. Schlumberger has a twelve month low of $38.66 and a twelve 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.

Schlumberger (NYSE:SLB) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, October 18th. The oil and gas company reported $0.89 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.88 by $0.01. Schlumberger had a return on equity of 21.84% and a net margin of 12.44%. The company had revenue of $9.16 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.27 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.78 EPS. Schlumberger’s revenue was up 10.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts expect that Schlumberger will post 3.4 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Schlumberger Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 9th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, December 4th will be issued a $0.275 dividend. This represents a $1.10 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.55%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, December 4th. Schlumberger’s payout ratio is currently 35.37%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Abdellah Merad sold 60,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $41.90, for a total transaction of $2,514,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 211,937 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,880,160.30. This represents a 22.06 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Corporate insiders own 0.26% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Schlumberger

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. ORG Partners LLC lifted its holdings in Schlumberger by 393.5% in the third quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 607 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 484 shares during the period. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC increased its holdings in shares of Schlumberger by 204.2% in the 2nd quarter. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC now owns 584 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 392 shares in the last quarter. Prospera Private Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Schlumberger in the third quarter valued at about $29,000. Unique Wealth Strategies LLC purchased a new stake in Schlumberger during the second quarter worth about $30,000. Finally, Riverview Trust Co increased its holdings in Schlumberger by 90.6% in the second quarter. Riverview Trust Co now owns 648 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 308 shares in the last quarter. 81.99% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.