Natixis Advisors L.P. Sells 24,695 Shares of Schlumberger Limited (NYSE:SLB)

Natixis Advisors L.P. decreased its stake in shares of Schlumberger Limited (NYSE:SLB) by 4.3% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 553,412 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after selling 24,695 shares during the period. Natixis Advisors L.P.’s holdings in Schlumberger were worth $28,799,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in SLB. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in Schlumberger by 33.4% during the 3rd quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. now owns 125,099 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $7,293,000 after acquiring an additional 31,303 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. raised its position in shares of Schlumberger by 24.9% in the third quarter. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. now owns 337,251 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $19,662,000 after buying an additional 67,243 shares in the last quarter. Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. raised its position in shares of Schlumberger by 28.9% in the third quarter. Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. now owns 19,680 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $1,147,000 after buying an additional 4,417 shares in the last quarter. Independent Advisor Alliance boosted its stake in Schlumberger by 2.7% during the third quarter. Independent Advisor Alliance now owns 8,028 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $468,000 after buying an additional 208 shares during the period. Finally, Sage Mountain Advisors LLC increased its stake in Schlumberger by 6.0% in the 3rd quarter. Sage Mountain Advisors LLC now owns 6,438 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $375,000 after acquiring an additional 364 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.99% of the company’s stock.

Schlumberger Trading Up 0.2 %

NYSE SLB opened at $47.66 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $68.12 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.83, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.92 and a beta of 1.64. Schlumberger Limited has a fifty-two week low of $42.73 and a fifty-two week high of $62.12. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $51.63 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $51.79. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a current ratio of 1.37.

Schlumberger (NYSE:SLB) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, April 19th. The oil and gas company reported $0.75 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.75. Schlumberger had a net margin of 12.72% and a return on equity of 21.88%. The business had revenue of $8.71 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $8.70 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.63 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts forecast that Schlumberger Limited will post 3.51 earnings per share for the current year.

Schlumberger Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared 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. This represents a $1.10 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.31%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, June 5th. Schlumberger’s dividend payout ratio is presently 36.54%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CFO Stephane Biguet sold 6,250 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $48.64, for a total value of $304,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 242,932 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,816,212.48. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other news, CFO Stephane Biguet sold 6,250 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $48.64, for a total value of $304,000.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 242,932 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,816,212.48. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Abdellah Merad sold 50,000 shares of Schlumberger stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $48.52, for a total transaction of $2,426,000.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 261,507 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $12,688,319.64. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.26% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Susquehanna reiterated a “positive” rating and set a $77.00 price target on shares of Schlumberger in a research report on Monday, April 22nd. BMO Capital Markets lowered their price objective on shares of Schlumberger from $66.00 to $64.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 22nd. Stifel Nicolaus reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $64.00 target price on shares of Schlumberger in a research report on Monday, April 22nd. The Goldman Sachs Group restated a “buy” rating on shares of Schlumberger in a research report on Monday, April 1st. Finally, Barclays reduced their price objective on Schlumberger from $74.00 to $70.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 4th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seventeen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Schlumberger has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $68.72.

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.