Abdellah Merad Sells 60,000 Shares of Schlumberger Limited (NYSE:SLB) Stock

Schlumberger Limited (NYSE:SLB - Get Free Report) EVP Abdellah Merad sold 60,000 shares of Schlumberger stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $41.44, for a total transaction of $2,486,400.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 210,502 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,723,202.88. This trade represents a 22.18 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link.

Schlumberger Trading Down 2.0 %

SLB traded down $0.81 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $40.21. The company's stock had a trading volume of 13,101,326 shares, compared to its average volume of 14,117,565. The firm has a market cap of $56.32 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.93, a PEG ratio of 9.70 and a beta of 1.52. Schlumberger Limited has a 52-week low of $36.52 and a 52-week high of $55.69. The company has a current ratio of 1.45, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $40.49 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $42.58.

Schlumberger (NYSE:SLB - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly 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. Schlumberger had a net margin of 12.29% and a return on equity of 21.90%. The company had revenue of $9.28 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.24 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.86 earnings per share. Schlumberger's revenue was up 3.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts anticipate that Schlumberger Limited will post 3.38 earnings per share for the current year.

Schlumberger Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 3rd. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, February 5th will be paid a dividend of $0.285 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, February 5th. This is a positive change from Schlumberger's previous quarterly dividend of $0.28. This represents a $1.14 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.84%. Schlumberger's dividend payout ratio is currently 35.37%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Schlumberger

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. ORG Partners LLC raised its holdings in Schlumberger by 393.5% in the third quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 607 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 484 shares during the period. Prospera Private Wealth LLC purchased a new position in shares of Schlumberger in the 3rd quarter valued at $29,000. YANKCOM Partnership acquired a new position in shares of Schlumberger during the 4th quarter valued at $31,000. Stonebridge Financial Group LLC purchased a new stake in Schlumberger during the 4th quarter worth $32,000. Finally, Ashton Thomas Securities LLC acquired a new stake in Schlumberger in the 3rd quarter valued at $37,000. 81.99% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. Bank of America lowered their price objective on Schlumberger from $58.00 to $54.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, October 14th. Evercore ISI reissued an "in-line" rating and issued a $44.00 target price (down previously from $62.00) on shares of Schlumberger in a report on Wednesday, January 15th. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their price target on shares of Schlumberger from $64.00 to $61.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 3rd. BMO Capital Markets reduced their price objective on shares of Schlumberger from $53.00 to $48.00 in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. Finally, Susquehanna lowered their target price on shares of Schlumberger from $60.00 to $56.00 and set a "positive" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, October 21st. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $55.81.

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.