Schlumberger (NYSE:SLB) Stock Price Down 2.3% on Insider Selling

Schlumberger Limited (NYSE:SLB)’s share price dropped 2.3% during trading on Wednesday after an insider sold shares in the company. The stock traded as low as $42.44 and last traded at $42.73. Approximately 5,069,767 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 63% from the average daily volume of 13,889,081 shares. The stock had previously closed at $43.74.

Specifically, VP Ugo Prechner sold 7,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $44.20, for a total transaction of $309,400.00. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 11,240 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $496,808. This trade represents a 38.38 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Mogharbel Khaled Al sold 123,097 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $44.09, for a total transaction of $5,427,346.73. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 184,626 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,140,160.34. The trade was a 40.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In related news, Director Vijay Kasibhatla sold 25,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.94, for a total value of $1,098,500.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 49,595 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,179,204.30. This trade represents a 33.51 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on SLB. Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $57.00 price target on shares of Schlumberger in a research note on Tuesday. Sanford C. Bernstein raised shares of Schlumberger to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 12th. Evercore ISI restated an “in-line” rating and set a $44.00 target price (down from $62.00) on shares of Schlumberger in a research report on Wednesday, January 15th. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their target price on shares of Schlumberger from $60.00 to $59.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, December 23rd. Finally, Citigroup lifted their price target on shares of Schlumberger from $50.00 to $54.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Schlumberger has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $55.81.

Schlumberger Trading Down 2.3 %

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a current ratio of 1.45. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $40.83 and a 200-day moving average of $42.80. The company has a market cap of $60.37 billion, a PE ratio of 13.74, a PEG ratio of 3.61 and a beta of 1.52.

Schlumberger (NYSE:SLB) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 17th. The oil and gas company reported $0.92 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.90 by $0.02. Schlumberger had a net margin of 12.29% and a return on equity of 21.90%. The firm had revenue of $9.28 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9,241,140 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.86 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.3% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Schlumberger Limited will post 3.29 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Schlumberger Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 3rd. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, February 5th will be paid a dividend of $0.285 per share. This represents a $1.14 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.67%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, February 5th. This is an increase from Schlumberger’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.28. Schlumberger’s payout ratio is currently 35.37%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. ORG Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of Schlumberger by 393.5% in 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 during the period. Prospera Private Wealth LLC bought a new position in Schlumberger in the third quarter worth approximately $29,000. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC bought a new position in Schlumberger in the third quarter worth approximately $37,000. DiNuzzo Private Wealth Inc. lifted its holdings in Schlumberger by 1,068.3% during the third quarter. DiNuzzo Private Wealth Inc. now owns 958 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $40,000 after buying an additional 876 shares during the period. Finally, J. Stern & Co. LLP bought a new stake in Schlumberger during the 3rd quarter valued at $47,000. 81.99% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.