Schlumberger Limited (NYSE:SLB) Shares Sold by Hardman Johnston Global Advisors LLC

Hardman Johnston Global Advisors LLC reduced its holdings in shares of Schlumberger Limited (NYSE:SLB) by 2.6% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 95,108 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after selling 2,540 shares during the period. Hardman Johnston Global Advisors LLC’s holdings in Schlumberger were worth $3,646,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in SLB. Pacer Advisors Inc. increased its stake in Schlumberger by 12,289.6% during the 4th quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 13,043,359 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $500,082,000 after buying an additional 12,938,082 shares during the period. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC increased its position in shares of Schlumberger by 20.6% in the 3rd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 11,213,944 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $470,425,000 after purchasing an additional 1,916,851 shares during the last quarter. Scharf Investments LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Schlumberger in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $52,607,000. Van ECK Associates Corp increased its position in shares of Schlumberger by 12.7% in the 4th quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 8,103,715 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $310,696,000 after purchasing an additional 915,925 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Weiss Asset Management LP purchased a new stake in shares of Schlumberger in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $37,322,000. 81.99% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have commented on SLB shares. Citigroup increased their price objective on shares of Schlumberger from $50.00 to $54.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. Griffin Securities downgraded shares of Schlumberger from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, December 20th. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their price objective on shares of Schlumberger from $64.00 to $61.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on shares of Schlumberger from $49.00 to $46.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. Finally, Evercore ISI reaffirmed an “in-line” rating and issued a $44.00 target price (down from $62.00) on shares of Schlumberger in a research report on Wednesday, January 15th. Six 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. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Schlumberger has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $55.81.

Insider Transactions at Schlumberger

In related news, insider Dianne B. Ralston sold 43,161 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.96, for a total transaction of $1,897,357.56. Following the sale, the insider now owns 235,024 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,331,655.04. The trade was a 15.52 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, insider Bejar Carmen Rando sold 5,524 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.41, for a total transaction of $223,224.84. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 30,829 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,245,799.89. This represents a 15.20 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 263,782 shares of company stock worth $11,442,229. Company insiders own 0.26% of the company’s stock.

Schlumberger Stock Down 2.1 %

SLB stock opened at $41.73 on Monday. Schlumberger Limited has a one year low of $36.52 and a one year high of $55.69. The stock has a market capitalization of $58.45 billion, a PE ratio of 13.42, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 10.10 and a beta of 1.51. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a current ratio of 1.45. The company has a fifty day moving average of $40.20 and a 200-day moving average of $41.89.

Schlumberger (NYSE:SLB) last released its earnings results on Friday, January 17th. The oil and gas company reported $0.92 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.90 by $0.02. Schlumberger had a net margin of 12.29% and a return on equity of 21.90%. 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 business earned $0.86 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 3.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts expect that Schlumberger Limited will post 3.38 EPS for the current year.

Schlumberger Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 3rd. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, February 5th will be paid a $0.285 dividend. This represents a $1.14 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.73%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, February 5th. This is a boost from Schlumberger’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.28. Schlumberger’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 36.66%.

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.