Schlumberger Limited (NYSE:SLB) Given Consensus Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Schlumberger Limited (NYSE:SLB) has earned an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the twenty-one brokerages that are covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, sixteen have issued a buy recommendation and one has given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month price objective among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $58.79.

SLB has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Atb Cap Markets lowered shares of Schlumberger from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. 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 report on Tuesday, October 1st. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on shares of Schlumberger from $49.00 to $46.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. 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 note on Monday, September 16th. Finally, UBS Group dropped their target price on shares of Schlumberger from $63.00 to $57.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, September 18th.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Schlumberger news, EVP Abdellah Merad sold 60,000 shares of the 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 owns 211,937 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,880,160.30. This represents a 22.06 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.26% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Schlumberger

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. ORG Partners LLC increased its holdings in Schlumberger by 393.5% during the 3rd quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 607 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 484 shares in the last quarter. Prospera Private Wealth LLC acquired a new position in shares of Schlumberger during the third quarter worth about $29,000. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC bought a new position in shares of Schlumberger during the third quarter worth about $37,000. DiNuzzo Private Wealth Inc. raised its position in Schlumberger by 1,068.3% in the 3rd quarter. DiNuzzo Private Wealth Inc. now owns 958 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $40,000 after buying an additional 876 shares during the last quarter. Finally, J. Stern & Co. LLP bought a new stake in Schlumberger in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $47,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.99% of the company’s stock.

Schlumberger Trading Up 1.3 %

NYSE:SLB opened at $37.73 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52, a quick ratio of 1.12 and a current ratio of 1.48. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $41.92 and its 200 day simple moving average is $43.71. The stock has a market cap of $53.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.13, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 1.51. Schlumberger has a one year low of $36.52 and a one year high of $55.69.

Schlumberger (NYSE:SLB) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, October 18th. The oil and gas company reported $0.89 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping 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 company had revenue of $9.16 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.27 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.78 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Schlumberger will post 3.39 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Schlumberger Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 9th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, December 4th will be given a dividend of $0.275 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, December 4th. This represents a $1.10 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.92%. Schlumberger’s payout ratio is presently 35.37%.

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.