Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. Increases Stake in Schlumberger Limited (NYSE:SLB)

Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. increased its position in shares of Schlumberger Limited (NYSE:SLB) by 159.0% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 92,515 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after buying an additional 56,801 shares during the period. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd.’s holdings in Schlumberger were worth $3,547,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in SLB. Baxter Bros Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Schlumberger by 11.6% in the 4th quarter. Baxter Bros Inc. now owns 21,280 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $816,000 after purchasing an additional 2,210 shares in the last quarter. TIAA Trust National Association increased its holdings in Schlumberger by 3.9% in the fourth quarter. TIAA Trust National Association now owns 10,068 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $386,000 after buying an additional 376 shares during the last quarter. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC raised its stake in Schlumberger by 2,258.3% in the fourth quarter. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC now owns 20,753 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $796,000 after buying an additional 19,873 shares in the last quarter. EntryPoint Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Schlumberger during the 4th quarter worth about $270,000. Finally, Segall Bryant & Hamill LLC boosted its position in shares of Schlumberger by 22.4% during the 4th quarter. Segall Bryant & Hamill LLC now owns 330,482 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $12,671,000 after acquiring an additional 60,487 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.99% of the company’s stock.

Schlumberger Price Performance

Schlumberger stock opened at $42.30 on Wednesday. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $41.27 and a 200-day simple moving average of $41.42. Schlumberger Limited has a 12 month low of $36.52 and a 12 month high of $55.69. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49, a current ratio of 1.45 and a quick ratio of 1.11. The stock has a market capitalization of $57.52 billion, a PE ratio of 13.60, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 10.10 and a beta of 1.47.

Schlumberger (NYSE:SLB) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 17th. The oil and gas company reported $0.92 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.90 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $9.28 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.24 billion. Schlumberger had a net margin of 12.29% and a return on equity of 21.90%. Schlumberger’s quarterly revenue was up 3.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.86 EPS. Equities analysts predict that Schlumberger Limited will post 3.38 earnings per share for the current year.

Schlumberger Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 3rd. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, February 5th will be issued a $0.285 dividend. This represents a $1.14 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.70%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, February 5th. This is a positive change from Schlumberger’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.28. Schlumberger’s payout ratio is currently 36.66%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, VP Ugo Prechner sold 7,000 shares of Schlumberger stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $44.20, for a total value of $309,400.00. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 11,240 shares in the company, valued at $496,808. The trade was a 38.38 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, insider Dianne B. Ralston sold 43,161 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $43.96, for a total value of $1,897,357.56. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 235,024 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,331,655.04. The trade was a 15.52 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 290,772 shares of company stock worth $12,546,660. Company insiders own 0.26% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

SLB has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Citigroup boosted their target price on Schlumberger from $50.00 to $54.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. Evercore ISI restated an “in-line” rating and set a $44.00 price objective (down previously from $62.00) on shares of Schlumberger in a research report on Wednesday, January 15th. Atb Cap Markets downgraded shares of Schlumberger from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. BMO Capital Markets reduced their price target on shares of Schlumberger from $53.00 to $48.00 in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on shares of Schlumberger from $49.00 to $46.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $55.81.

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.