Renaissance Technologies LLC Sells 1,868,090 Shares of Schlumberger Limited (NYSE:SLB)

Renaissance Technologies LLC reduced its position in shares of Schlumberger Limited (NYSE:SLB - Free Report) by 80.9% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 440,114 shares of the oil and gas company's stock after selling 1,868,090 shares during the period. Renaissance Technologies LLC's holdings in Schlumberger were worth $16,874,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in SLB. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Schlumberger by 4.8% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 29,985,360 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $1,146,195,000 after purchasing an additional 1,377,134 shares during the period. First Eagle Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in Schlumberger by 1.2% in the 4th quarter. First Eagle Investment Management LLC now owns 27,836,555 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $1,067,254,000 after purchasing an additional 343,261 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Schlumberger during the fourth quarter worth approximately $735,398,000. Boston Partners lifted its position in shares of Schlumberger by 9.9% in the fourth quarter. Boston Partners now owns 15,529,159 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $597,356,000 after buying an additional 1,405,186 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Schlumberger by 12.4% during the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 15,396,967 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $590,320,000 after acquiring an additional 1,700,203 shares during the last quarter. 81.99% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Abdellah Merad sold 60,000 shares of Schlumberger stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $41.44, for a total transaction of $2,486,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, 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 position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Aparna Raman sold 25,133 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, March 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $42.28, for a total transaction of $1,062,623.24. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 31,031 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,311,990.68. This represents a 44.75 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 315,905 shares of company stock valued at $13,609,283 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.26% of the company's stock.

Schlumberger Price Performance

Shares of NYSE SLB traded up $0.94 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $35.09. The stock had a trading volume of 15,915,644 shares, compared to its average volume of 13,076,236. Schlumberger Limited has a 1 year low of $31.11 and a 1 year high of $50.94. 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 50 day simple moving average of $39.35 and a 200-day simple moving average of $40.77. The company has a market capitalization of $47.72 billion, a PE ratio of 11.28, a P/E/G ratio of 10.10 and a beta of 1.11.

Schlumberger (NYSE:SLB - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Friday, January 17th. The oil and gas company reported $0.92 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.90 by $0.02. Schlumberger had a return on equity of 21.90% and a net margin of 12.29%. The company had revenue of $9.28 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $9.24 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.86 earnings per share. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 3.3% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Schlumberger Limited will post 3.38 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

SLB has been the subject of several research reports. Griffin Securities cut Schlumberger from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, December 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Schlumberger from $48.00 to $50.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their price target on shares of Schlumberger from $60.00 to $59.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, March 27th. TD Cowen boosted their price objective on shares of Schlumberger from $53.00 to $55.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. Finally, Citigroup raised their target price on shares of Schlumberger from $50.00 to $54.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $54.15.

Schlumberger Profile

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.