Schlumberger (NYSE:SLB) Hits New 12-Month Low Following Analyst Downgrade

Schlumberger Limited (NYSE:SLB - Get Free Report)'s stock price hit a new 52-week low during trading on Wednesday after Barclays lowered their price target on the stock from $61.00 to $53.00. Barclays currently has an overweight rating on the stock. Schlumberger traded as low as $38.49 and last traded at $38.67, with a volume of 820819 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $38.93.

Several other brokerages have also weighed in on SLB. TD Cowen lowered their target price on shares of Schlumberger from $68.00 to $65.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, October 21st. Citigroup lowered their price target on Schlumberger from $54.00 to $53.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, December 9th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on Schlumberger from $65.00 to $60.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Monday, September 16th. BMO Capital Markets lowered their target price on Schlumberger from $60.00 to $58.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Finally, Susquehanna cut their price target on Schlumberger from $60.00 to $56.00 and set a "positive" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, October 21st. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $60.15.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Schlumberger news, EVP Abdellah Merad sold 60,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $41.90, for a total transaction of $2,514,000.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 211,937 shares of the company's stock, valued at $8,880,160.30. This trade represents a 22.06 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 0.26% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Schlumberger

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Syntax Research Inc. purchased a new stake in Schlumberger during the third quarter valued at about $3,491,000. Copley Financial Group Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Schlumberger during the 3rd quarter worth about $515,000. Peapack Gladstone Financial Corp grew its holdings in shares of Schlumberger by 15.0% during the 3rd quarter. Peapack Gladstone Financial Corp now owns 268,008 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $11,244,000 after purchasing an additional 34,861 shares during the period. Synovus Financial Corp increased its position in Schlumberger by 30.2% during the 3rd quarter. Synovus Financial Corp now owns 109,717 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $4,603,000 after purchasing an additional 25,465 shares in the last quarter. Finally, PVG Asset Management Corp purchased a new position in Schlumberger in the third quarter valued at approximately $386,000. 81.99% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Schlumberger Trading Down 4.1 %

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52, a current ratio of 1.48 and a quick ratio of 1.12. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $42.38 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $43.85. The stock has a market capitalization of $52.72 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.00, a PEG ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 1.51.

Schlumberger (NYSE:SLB - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Friday, October 18th. The oil and gas company reported $0.89 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.88 by $0.01. Schlumberger had a net margin of 12.44% and a return on equity of 21.84%. The business had revenue of $9.16 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.27 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.78 EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was up 10.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts anticipate that Schlumberger Limited will post 3.39 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Schlumberger Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 9th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, December 4th will be paid a $0.275 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, December 4th. This represents a $1.10 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.95%. Schlumberger's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 35.37%.

Schlumberger Company 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.