Schlumberger Limited (NYSE:SLB) Shares Sold by Cornercap Investment Counsel Inc.

Cornercap Investment Counsel Inc. cut its holdings in Schlumberger Limited (NYSE:SLB) by 4.7% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 29,073 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after selling 1,422 shares during the quarter. Cornercap Investment Counsel Inc.’s holdings in Schlumberger were worth $1,115,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. CX Institutional raised its holdings in shares of Schlumberger by 2.4% in the 4th quarter. CX Institutional now owns 10,370 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $398,000 after purchasing an additional 244 shares in the last quarter. TCW Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Schlumberger by 1.3% during the fourth quarter. TCW Group Inc. now owns 19,797 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $759,000 after purchasing an additional 259 shares during the last quarter. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. increased its stake in Schlumberger by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 56,714 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $2,174,000 after purchasing an additional 262 shares in the last quarter. Cromwell Holdings LLC lifted its stake in Schlumberger by 7.0% during the fourth quarter. Cromwell Holdings LLC now owns 4,350 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $167,000 after buying an additional 283 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mitchell Mcleod Pugh & Williams Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Schlumberger by 2.0% in the fourth quarter. Mitchell Mcleod Pugh & Williams Inc. now owns 14,775 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $566,000 after buying an additional 293 shares during the period. 81.99% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Schlumberger Stock Down 0.6 %

Shares of SLB opened at $41.87 on Friday. Schlumberger Limited has a 52 week low of $36.52 and a 52 week high of $55.65. The firm has a market capitalization of $56.93 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.46, a P/E/G ratio of 10.10 and a beta of 1.47. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $41.29 and a 200-day simple moving average of $41.44. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a current ratio of 1.45.

Schlumberger (NYSE:SLB) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 17th. The oil and gas company reported $0.92 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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%. Schlumberger’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.86 EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that Schlumberger Limited will post 3.38 earnings per share for the current year.

Schlumberger Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 3rd. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 5th will be paid a $0.285 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, February 5th. This represents a $1.14 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.72%. This is a boost from Schlumberger’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.28. Schlumberger’s payout ratio is presently 36.66%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

SLB has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Citigroup lifted their price objective on shares of Schlumberger from $50.00 to $54.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. Griffin Securities downgraded Schlumberger from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, December 20th. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $57.00 target price on shares of Schlumberger in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of Schlumberger from $48.00 to $50.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group dropped their price target on shares of Schlumberger from $60.00 to $59.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $55.69.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Schlumberger news, insider Gavin Rennick sold 26,990 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.92, for a total value of $1,104,430.80. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 53,584 shares in the company, valued at $2,192,657.28. This represents a 33.50 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Vijay Kasibhatla sold 25,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.94, for a total transaction of $1,098,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 49,595 shares in the company, valued at $2,179,204.30. This represents a 33.51 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 290,772 shares of company stock valued at $12,546,660 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.26% 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.