Investors Buy High Volume of Schlumberger Call Options (NYSE:SLB)

Schlumberger Limited (NYSE:SLB - Get Free Report) was the target of unusually large options trading on Tuesday. Stock traders acquired 52,483 call options on the company. This represents an increase of approximately 80% compared to the typical daily volume of 29,194 call options.

Schlumberger Stock Up 4.0 %

NYSE SLB traded up $1.60 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $41.36. The company had a trading volume of 19,613,595 shares, compared to its average volume of 14,443,572. Schlumberger has a fifty-two week low of $36.52 and a fifty-two week high of $55.69. The company has a market capitalization of $56.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.30, a P/E/G ratio of 10.10 and a beta of 1.47. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49, a current ratio of 1.45 and a quick ratio of 1.11. The firm's 50 day moving average is $40.73 and its 200 day moving average is $41.64.

Schlumberger (NYSE:SLB - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 17th. The oil and gas company reported $0.92 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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 firm had revenue of $9.28 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.24 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.86 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 3.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Schlumberger will post 3.38 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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Schlumberger Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 3rd. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 5th will be issued a $0.285 dividend. This is an increase from Schlumberger's previous quarterly dividend of $0.28. This represents a $1.14 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.76%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, February 5th. Schlumberger's dividend payout ratio is currently 36.66%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Vijay Kasibhatla sold 25,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $43.94, for a total value of $1,098,500.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 49,595 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,179,204.30. This represents a 33.51 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Mogharbel Khaled Al sold 123,097 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $44.09, for a total value of $5,427,346.73. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 184,626 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,140,160.34. The trade was a 40.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 290,772 shares of company stock worth $12,546,660 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.26% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Schlumberger

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Prospera Private Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Schlumberger during the third quarter valued at about $29,000. YANKCOM Partnership acquired a new stake in shares of Schlumberger during the fourth quarter valued at about $31,000. Stonebridge Financial Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Schlumberger during the fourth quarter valued at about $32,000. Golden State Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Schlumberger during the fourth quarter valued at about $34,000. Finally, Ashton Thomas Securities LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Schlumberger during the third quarter valued at about $37,000. 81.99% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

SLB has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their target price on Schlumberger from $64.00 to $61.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on Schlumberger from $48.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. Sanford C. Bernstein raised Schlumberger to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 12th. Piper Sandler started coverage on Schlumberger in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $47.00 price target on the stock. Finally, TD Cowen increased their price target on Schlumberger from $53.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target 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.