Core Laboratories Inc. (NYSE:CLB) Shares Purchased by Russell Investments Group Ltd.

Russell Investments Group Ltd. increased its position in shares of Core Laboratories Inc. (NYSE:CLB - Free Report) by 27.4% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 212,823 shares of the oil and gas company's stock after buying an additional 45,739 shares during the period. Russell Investments Group Ltd. owned 0.45% of Core Laboratories worth $3,684,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Assetmark Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Core Laboratories during the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Core Laboratories by 173.8% during the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 2,037 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $35,000 after acquiring an additional 1,293 shares during the last quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Core Laboratories by 2,688.5% during the fourth quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 2,426 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $42,000 after buying an additional 2,339 shares during the period. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS bought a new stake in shares of Core Laboratories during the 4th quarter valued at about $149,000. Finally, Isthmus Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of Core Laboratories by 5.6% during the 4th quarter. Isthmus Partners LLC now owns 11,219 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $194,000 after acquiring an additional 599 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.81% of the company's stock.

Core Laboratories Price Performance

CLB traded up $0.26 during trading on Friday, reaching $12.58. 835,655 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 387,824. Core Laboratories Inc. has a 12-month low of $10.14 and a 12-month high of $25.13. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $14.53 and a 200 day simple moving average of $17.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49, a quick ratio of 1.71 and a current ratio of 2.32. The company has a market cap of $587.28 million, a P/E ratio of 19.05, a PEG ratio of 0.99 and a beta of 1.99.

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

Core Laboratories Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed 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 annualized dividend 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 presently 6.06%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus cut their price objective on shares of Core Laboratories from $19.00 to $15.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday. Citigroup raised Core Laboratories from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and increased their price target for the company from $15.00 to $16.00 in a report on Wednesday, March 12th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and four have given a hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $15.75.

About Core Laboratories

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.