Schlumberger (NYSE:SLB) Trading Down 1.5% – Here’s Why

Schlumberger Limited (NYSE:SLB)’s stock price dropped 1.5% during trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as low as $40.20 and last traded at $40.33. Approximately 6,130,630 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 58% from the average daily volume of 14,516,955 shares. The stock had previously closed at $40.94.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

SLB has been the topic of several research reports. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on Schlumberger from $49.00 to $46.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. Citigroup upped their price target on Schlumberger from $50.00 to $54.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. TD Cowen upped their price target on Schlumberger from $53.00 to $55.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price target on Schlumberger from $60.00 to $59.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, December 23rd. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $57.00 target price on shares of Schlumberger in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. Six research 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’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $55.81.

Schlumberger Price Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 1.11, a current ratio of 1.45 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49. The stock has a market cap of $56.25 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.91, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 9.55 and a beta of 1.51. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $40.25 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $42.35.

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

Schlumberger Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 3rd. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, February 5th will be given a $0.285 dividend. This is a positive change from Schlumberger’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.28. This represents a $1.14 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.84%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, February 5th. Schlumberger’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 35.37%.

Insider Activity

In other Schlumberger news, VP Ugo Prechner sold 7,000 shares of Schlumberger stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $44.20, for a total transaction of $309,400.00. Following the completion of 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 sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Bejar Carmen Rando sold 5,524 shares of Schlumberger stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.41, for a total transaction of $223,224.84. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 30,829 shares in the company, valued at $1,245,799.89. This trade represents a 15.20 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 263,782 shares of company stock worth $11,442,229. 0.26% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. ORG Partners LLC boosted its stake in Schlumberger by 393.5% in the 3rd quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 607 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 484 shares in the last quarter. Prospera Private Wealth LLC bought a new position in Schlumberger in the 3rd quarter worth about $29,000. YANKCOM Partnership bought a new position in Schlumberger in the 4th quarter worth about $31,000. Stonebridge Financial Group LLC bought a new position in Schlumberger in the 4th quarter worth about $32,000. Finally, Golden State Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Schlumberger in the 4th quarter worth about $34,000. 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.