Norges Bank Makes New Investment in Core Laboratories Inc. (NYSE:CLB)

Norges Bank purchased a new position in Core Laboratories Inc. (NYSE:CLB - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund purchased 110,328 shares of the oil and gas company's stock, valued at approximately $1,910,000. Norges Bank owned about 0.23% of Core Laboratories at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. State Street Corp boosted its position in Core Laboratories by 2.9% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,975,016 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $36,597,000 after purchasing an additional 56,187 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Core Laboratories by 0.7% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,053,204 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $19,521,000 after purchasing an additional 7,721 shares during the period. Boston Trust Walden Corp lifted its stake in Core Laboratories by 2.7% during the 4th quarter. Boston Trust Walden Corp now owns 617,336 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $10,686,000 after acquiring an additional 16,503 shares in the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp grew its holdings in shares of Core Laboratories by 6.3% in the fourth quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 443,621 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $7,679,000 after purchasing an additional 26,237 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in Core Laboratories during the 4th quarter worth $6,760,000. 97.81% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Core Laboratories Price Performance

NYSE CLB traded up $0.00 on Thursday, reaching $12.32. The company's stock had a trading volume of 223,052 shares, compared to its average volume of 385,968. The firm's 50 day moving average is $14.72 and its two-hundred day moving average is $17.53. The stock has a market cap of $575.42 million, a PE ratio of 18.67, a PEG ratio of 0.99 and a beta of 1.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49, a quick ratio of 1.71 and a current ratio of 2.32. Core Laboratories Inc. has a twelve month low of $10.14 and a twelve month high of $25.13.

Core Laboratories (NYSE:CLB - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The oil and gas company reported $0.23 EPS for the quarter, meeting analysts' consensus estimates of $0.23. Core Laboratories had a return on equity of 16.24% and a net margin of 5.99%. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Core Laboratories Inc. will post 0.96 EPS for the current year.

Core Laboratories Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 3rd. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 10th were given a $0.01 dividend. This represents a $0.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.32%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 10th. Core Laboratories's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 6.06%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms recently commented on CLB. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their target price on shares of Core Laboratories from $19.00 to $15.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday. Citigroup raised Core Laboratories from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and raised their price target for the company from $15.00 to $16.00 in a report on Wednesday, March 12th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and four have assigned a hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $15.75.

Core Laboratories Profile

Core Laboratories Inc provides reservoir description and production enhancement services and products to the oil and gas industry in the United States, and internationally. It operates through Reservoir Description and Production Enhancement segments. The Reservoir Description segment includes the characterization of petroleum reservoir rock and reservoir fluid samples to enhance production and improve recovery of crude oil and gas from its clients' reservoirs.