Schlumberger Limited (NYSE:SLB) Shares Purchased by Ceredex Value Advisors LLC

Ceredex Value Advisors LLC boosted its position in Schlumberger Limited (NYSE:SLB - Free Report) by 3.6% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 2,457,665 shares of the oil and gas company's stock after purchasing an additional 85,688 shares during the quarter. Schlumberger makes up approximately 1.9% of Ceredex Value Advisors LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 3rd largest holding. Ceredex Value Advisors LLC owned about 0.18% of Schlumberger worth $94,227,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Schlumberger by 4.8% during the fourth 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 acquiring an additional 1,377,134 shares during the last quarter. First Eagle Investment Management LLC grew its stake in Schlumberger by 1.2% during the 4th quarter. First Eagle Investment Management LLC now owns 27,836,555 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $1,067,254,000 after buying an additional 343,261 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Schlumberger during the 4th quarter valued at about $735,398,000. Boston Partners boosted its holdings in Schlumberger by 9.9% in the fourth quarter. Boston Partners now owns 15,529,159 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $597,356,000 after acquiring an additional 1,405,186 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. grew its stake in shares of Schlumberger by 12.4% during the fourth 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 hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Evercore ISI restated an "in-line" rating and set a $44.00 price target (down previously from $62.00) on shares of Schlumberger in a research note on Wednesday, January 15th. Barclays reduced their target price on Schlumberger from $54.00 to $53.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, March 31st. Citigroup boosted their price target on Schlumberger from $50.00 to $54.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. TD Cowen raised their price objective on Schlumberger from $53.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $57.00 target price on shares of Schlumberger in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Schlumberger has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $54.15.

Schlumberger Price Performance

SLB stock traded up $0.94 during 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. The company's 50-day moving average price is $39.35 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $40.77. Schlumberger Limited has a twelve month low of $31.11 and a twelve month high of $50.94. The stock has a market capitalization of $47.72 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.28, a PEG ratio of 10.10 and a beta of 1.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49, a current ratio of 1.45 and a quick ratio of 1.11.

Schlumberger (NYSE:SLB - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 17th. The oil and gas company reported $0.92 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.90 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $9.28 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.24 billion. Schlumberger had a return on equity of 21.90% and a net margin of 12.29%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 3.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.86 EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that Schlumberger Limited will post 3.38 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Schlumberger news, insider Aparna Raman sold 25,133 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, March 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $42.28, for a total value of $1,062,623.24. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 31,031 shares in the company, valued at $1,311,990.68. This represents a 44.75 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, VP Ugo Prechner sold 7,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $44.20, for a total transaction of $309,400.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 11,240 shares in the company, valued at approximately $496,808. The trade was a 38.38 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 315,905 shares of company stock worth $13,609,283. 0.26% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.