Schlumberger (NYSE:SLB) Stock Price Up 0.2% – Should You Buy?

Schlumberger Limited (NYSE:SLB)’s stock price rose 0.2% during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $44.26 and last traded at $44.24. Approximately 1,776,612 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 84% from the average daily volume of 11,034,956 shares. The stock had previously closed at $44.14.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms recently commented on SLB. Bank of America dropped their price objective on Schlumberger from $62.00 to $58.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, July 15th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on Schlumberger from $64.00 to $60.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, October 1st. Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on Schlumberger from $65.00 to $60.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, September 16th. Barclays reduced their price objective on Schlumberger from $70.00 to $67.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, July 23rd. Finally, Dbs Bank began coverage on Schlumberger in a research report on Wednesday, September 18th. They set a “buy” rating and a $64.50 price target on the stock. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nineteen have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $65.29.

Schlumberger Stock Performance

The company has a current ratio of 1.49, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55. The firm has a market cap of $62.81 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.70, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 1.51. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $43.23 and a 200 day moving average price of $46.57.

Schlumberger (NYSE:SLB) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, July 19th. The oil and gas company reported $0.85 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.83 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $9.14 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.08 billion. Schlumberger had a return on equity of 21.92% and a net margin of 12.56%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.72 EPS. As a group, analysts predict that Schlumberger Limited will post 3.47 earnings per share for the current year.

Schlumberger Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 10th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, September 4th will be given a $0.275 dividend. This represents a $1.10 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.49%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, September 4th. Schlumberger’s dividend payout ratio is currently 36.54%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Mogharbel Khaled Al sold 120,668 shares of Schlumberger stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.19, for a total transaction of $6,056,326.92. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 247,699 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $12,432,012.81. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, Director Vijay Kasibhatla sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, July 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $49.29, for a total value of $492,900.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 62,354 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,073,428.66. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Mogharbel Khaled Al sold 120,668 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, July 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.19, for a total value of $6,056,326.92. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 247,699 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $12,432,012.81. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 180,716 shares of company stock valued at $9,048,624 in the last three months. Company insiders own 0.26% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Schlumberger

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Financial Advocates Investment Management lifted its holdings in shares of Schlumberger by 3.4% in the 2nd quarter. Financial Advocates Investment Management now owns 6,558 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $309,000 after purchasing an additional 218 shares in the last quarter. Chilton Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Schlumberger by 0.8% during the 2nd quarter. Chilton Capital Management LLC now owns 26,202 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $1,236,000 after acquiring an additional 219 shares in the last quarter. First PREMIER Bank raised its stake in shares of Schlumberger by 8.7% during the 2nd quarter. First PREMIER Bank now owns 2,842 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $134,000 after purchasing an additional 227 shares during the period. Team Hewins LLC raised its stake in shares of Schlumberger by 3.0% during the 1st quarter. Team Hewins LLC now owns 7,924 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $436,000 after purchasing an additional 229 shares during the period. Finally, Sunbelt Securities Inc. raised its stake in shares of Schlumberger by 2.2% during the 1st quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. now owns 10,551 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $578,000 after purchasing an additional 230 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 81.99% of the company’s stock.

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.