Stifel Nicolaus Reiterates “Buy” Rating for Schlumberger (NYSE:SLB)

Stifel Nicolaus restated their buy rating on shares of Schlumberger (NYSE:SLB) in a report published on Monday morning, Benzinga reports. They currently have a $64.00 target price on the oil and gas company’s stock.

A number of other research analysts also recently issued reports on SLB. Benchmark reiterated a buy rating and set a $68.00 price objective on shares of Schlumberger in a research note on Monday. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on Schlumberger from $69.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a research note on Monday, January 22nd. Susquehanna reiterated a positive rating and set a $77.00 target price on shares of Schlumberger in a research report on Monday. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price target on Schlumberger from $66.00 to $69.00 and gave the stock an outperform rating in a report on Wednesday, April 3rd. Finally, Barclays dropped their price objective 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. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and an average target price of $69.67.

Schlumberger Price Performance

NYSE SLB opened at $49.52 on Monday. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $51.64 and a 200 day moving average of $52.32. Schlumberger has a one year low of $42.73 and a one year high of $62.12. The company has a market capitalization of $70.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.45, a PEG ratio of 0.95 and a beta of 1.60. 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 posted its earnings results on Friday, April 19th. The oil and gas company reported $0.75 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 business had revenue of $8.71 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.70 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.63 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 12.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Schlumberger will post 3.51 EPS for the current year.

Schlumberger Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 11th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, June 5th will be paid a dividend of $0.275 per share. This is a boost from Schlumberger’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, June 5th. This represents a $1.10 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.22%. Schlumberger’s dividend payout ratio is currently 36.54%.

Insider Activity at Schlumberger

In other news, VP Kevin Fyfe sold 20,223 shares of Schlumberger stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $52.05, for a total transaction of $1,052,607.15. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 31,198 shares in the company, valued at $1,623,855.90. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other Schlumberger news, VP Kevin Fyfe sold 20,223 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $52.05, for a total value of $1,052,607.15. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 31,198 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,623,855.90. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Stephane Biguet sold 6,250 shares of Schlumberger stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $48.64, for a total transaction 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 disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 133,621 shares of company stock worth $6,691,623 in the last quarter. 0.26% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Schlumberger

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Investment Advisory Services Inc. TX ADV raised its stake in Schlumberger by 1.4% in the third quarter. Investment Advisory Services Inc. TX ADV now owns 11,968 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $698,000 after buying an additional 171 shares in the last quarter. Miller Howard Investments Inc. NY lifted its stake in shares of Schlumberger by 0.5% during the 3rd quarter. Miller Howard Investments Inc. NY now owns 32,845 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $1,915,000 after purchasing an additional 176 shares during the last quarter. Stonegate Investment Group LLC boosted its position in Schlumberger by 1.7% during the third quarter. Stonegate Investment Group LLC now owns 10,864 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $633,000 after purchasing an additional 177 shares in the last quarter. CI Investments Inc. grew its stake in Schlumberger by 4.9% in the third quarter. CI Investments Inc. now owns 4,142 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $241,000 after purchasing an additional 192 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Montgomery Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in Schlumberger by 1.9% in the third quarter. Montgomery Investment Management Inc. now owns 10,920 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $637,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.99% 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.