Benchmark Reaffirms Buy Rating for Schlumberger (NYSE:SLB)

Benchmark reaffirmed their buy rating on shares of Schlumberger (NYSE:SLB) in a research note issued to investors on Monday morning, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a $68.00 target price on the oil and gas company’s stock.

A number of other analysts also recently weighed in on SLB. Barclays cut their price target on shares of Schlumberger from $74.00 to $70.00 and set an overweight rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 4th. HSBC reaffirmed a buy rating and set a $71.00 price target on shares of Schlumberger in a report on Thursday, April 4th. Bank of America cut their price target on shares of Schlumberger from $63.00 to $62.00 and set a buy rating for the company in a report on Monday. Susquehanna reaffirmed a positive rating and set a $77.00 price target on shares of Schlumberger in a report on Monday, April 8th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus upped their price target on shares of Schlumberger from $63.00 to $64.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a report on Monday, January 22nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Schlumberger has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $69.67.

Schlumberger Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:SLB opened at $49.45 on Monday. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $51.73 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $52.23. Schlumberger has a 12-month low of $42.73 and a 12-month high of $62.12. The firm has a market cap of $70.58 billion, a PE ratio of 16.43, a PEG ratio of 0.95 and a beta of 1.60. The company has a quick ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49.

Schlumberger (NYSE:SLB) last announced its earnings results on Friday, April 19th. The oil and gas company reported $0.75 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.75. Schlumberger had a net margin of 12.72% and a return on equity of 21.88%. The firm had revenue of $8.71 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.70 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.63 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 12.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts predict that Schlumberger will post 3.5 earnings per share for the current year.

Schlumberger Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 11th. Investors of record on Wednesday, June 5th will be paid a $0.275 dividend. This is an increase from Schlumberger’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, June 5th. This represents a $1.10 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.22%. Schlumberger’s dividend payout ratio is presently 36.54%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Schlumberger

In other Schlumberger news, CFO Stephane Biguet sold 6,250 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $52.78, for a total value of $329,875.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 249,182 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,151,825.96. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In other Schlumberger news, CFO Stephane Biguet sold 6,250 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $52.78, for a total value of $329,875.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 249,182 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,151,825.96. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Katharina Beumelburg sold 8,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $52.62, for a total transaction of $420,960.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 15,581 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $819,872.22. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 90,545 shares of company stock worth $4,458,430. 0.26% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Schlumberger

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. BluePath Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Schlumberger during the third quarter worth $25,000. Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Schlumberger during the fourth quarter worth $26,000. Register Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Schlumberger during the first quarter worth $27,000. MCF Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Schlumberger by 1,355.9% during the third quarter. MCF Advisors LLC now owns 495 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 461 shares during the period. Finally, Transcendent Capital Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Schlumberger during the fourth quarter worth $32,000. 81.99% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Schlumberger Company 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.