Schlumberger (NYSE:SLB) Shares Down 2.1% - Should You Sell?

Schlumberger Limited (NYSE:SLB - Get Free Report) was down 2.1% on Thursday . The company traded as low as $42.85 and last traded at $42.87. Approximately 2,799,695 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 75% from the average daily volume of 11,211,605 shares. The stock had previously closed at $43.77.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently commented on SLB shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on Schlumberger from $64.00 to $60.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. Bank of America reduced their price objective on shares of Schlumberger from $58.00 to $54.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, October 14th. Evercore ISI dropped their target price on shares of Schlumberger from $74.00 to $62.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, October 21st. Citigroup cut their target price on shares of Schlumberger from $60.00 to $54.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. Finally, Susquehanna decreased 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. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seventeen have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Schlumberger has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $60.97.

Schlumberger Price Performance

The stock has a 50-day moving average of $42.25 and a two-hundred day moving average of $44.96. The company has a current ratio of 1.48, a quick ratio of 1.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52. The firm has a market cap of $61.06 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.92, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 1.52.

Schlumberger (NYSE:SLB - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, October 18th. The oil and gas company reported $0.89 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates 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 earned $0.78 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was up 10.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts anticipate that Schlumberger Limited will post 3.4 EPS for the current year.

Schlumberger Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 9th. Investors of record on Wednesday, December 4th will be given a dividend of $0.275 per share. This represents a $1.10 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.54%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, December 4th. Schlumberger's payout ratio is presently 35.37%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Schlumberger

In other Schlumberger news, EVP Abdellah Merad sold 60,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $41.90, for a total value of $2,514,000.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 211,937 shares of the company's stock, valued at $8,880,160.30. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.26% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Schlumberger

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of SLB. Islay Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Schlumberger by 4,952.4% in the third quarter. Islay Capital Management LLC now owns 26,525 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $1,113,000 after buying an additional 26,000 shares during the last quarter. Swiss National Bank lifted its holdings in Schlumberger by 0.7% in the 3rd quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 4,242,627 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $177,978,000 after purchasing an additional 29,200 shares during the last quarter. S&CO Inc. boosted its position in Schlumberger by 51.7% during the third quarter. S&CO Inc. now owns 6,750 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $283,000 after purchasing an additional 2,300 shares during the period. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans grew its holdings in Schlumberger by 2.1% during the third quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 225,906 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $9,476,000 after purchasing an additional 4,665 shares during the last quarter. Finally, AM Squared Ltd raised its position in shares of Schlumberger by 16.3% in the third quarter. AM Squared Ltd now owns 5,000 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $210,000 after purchasing an additional 700 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.99% of the company's stock.

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.

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