Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. Sells 9,540 Shares of Schlumberger Limited (NYSE:SLB)

Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. trimmed its stake in Schlumberger Limited (NYSE:SLB) by 21.7% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 34,495 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after selling 9,540 shares during the quarter. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc.’s holdings in Schlumberger were worth $1,627,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in SLB. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Schlumberger by 1.4% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 134,150,168 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $7,352,771,000 after buying an additional 1,868,688 shares in the last quarter. Capital World Investors lifted its stake in Schlumberger by 72.3% in the first quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 88,950,956 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $4,875,402,000 after acquiring an additional 37,333,485 shares during the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD grew its position in shares of Schlumberger by 14.1% in the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 85,986,039 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $4,712,897,000 after acquiring an additional 10,606,191 shares during the period. Capital International Investors increased its stake in shares of Schlumberger by 0.6% during the 4th quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 14,797,363 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $770,122,000 after purchasing an additional 89,483 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Boston Partners raised its holdings in shares of Schlumberger by 35.8% in the 1st quarter. Boston Partners now owns 11,640,827 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $635,883,000 after purchasing an additional 3,069,395 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.99% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

SLB has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Dbs Bank initiated coverage on Schlumberger in a report on Wednesday, September 18th. They set a “buy” rating and a $64.50 price target for the company. Benchmark reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $68.00 target price on shares of Schlumberger in a research note on Monday, July 22nd. UBS Group dropped their price target on Schlumberger from $63.00 to $57.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, September 18th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on shares of Schlumberger from $65.00 to $60.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, September 16th. Finally, Susquehanna dropped their price objective on shares of Schlumberger from $77.00 to $70.00 and set a “positive” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, July 11th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Schlumberger currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $66.29.

Schlumberger Trading Down 0.8 %

Shares of NYSE:SLB opened at $42.41 on Monday. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $44.48 and its 200 day simple moving average is $47.36. Schlumberger Limited has a 1 year low of $38.66 and a 1 year high of $61.41. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a current ratio of 1.49 and a quick ratio of 1.13. The company has a market capitalization of $60.62 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.09, a P/E/G ratio of 0.86 and a beta of 1.51.

Schlumberger (NYSE:SLB) last released its earnings results on Friday, July 19th. The oil and gas company reported $0.85 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.83 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $9.14 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.08 billion. Schlumberger had a return on equity of 21.92% and a net margin of 12.56%. Schlumberger’s quarterly revenue was up 12.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.72 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that Schlumberger Limited will post 3.49 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Schlumberger Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 10th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, September 4th will be given a $0.275 dividend. This represents a $1.10 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.59%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, September 4th. Schlumberger’s payout ratio is presently 36.54%.

Insider Transactions at Schlumberger

In other Schlumberger news, EVP Mogharbel Khaled Al sold 120,668 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $50.19, for a total transaction of $6,056,326.92. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 247,699 shares in the company, valued at $12,432,012.81. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, CFO Stephane Biguet sold 50,048 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $49.94, for a total value of $2,499,397.12. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 203,076 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,141,615.44. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Mogharbel Khaled Al sold 120,668 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.19, for a total value of $6,056,326.92. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 247,699 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $12,432,012.81. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 180,716 shares of company stock valued at $9,048,624. Company 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.