Schlumberger (NYSE:SLB) Lowered to Equal Weight at Wells Fargo & Company

Wells Fargo & Company downgraded shares of Schlumberger (NYSE:SLB) from an overweight rating to an equal weight rating in a research report sent to investors on Monday, MarketBeat reports. They currently have $53.00 price objective on the oil and gas company’s stock, down from their previous price objective of $68.00.

A number of other analysts also recently issued reports on the stock. TD Cowen cut their price objective on shares of Schlumberger from $64.00 to $63.00 and set a buy rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 22nd. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price objective on shares of Schlumberger from $66.00 to $69.00 and gave the company an outperform rating in a report on Wednesday, April 3rd. Morgan Stanley reissued an overweight rating and issued a $65.00 price objective on shares of Schlumberger in a report on Monday, April 22nd. HSBC reissued a buy rating and issued a $71.00 price objective on shares of Schlumberger in a report on Thursday, April 4th. Finally, Barclays cut 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. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seventeen have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Schlumberger has an average rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $68.72.

Schlumberger Stock Performance

Shares of SLB stock opened at $49.21 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $70.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.35, 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. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $51.75 and a 200 day simple moving average of $52.02. Schlumberger has a 52 week low of $42.73 and a 52 week high of $62.12.

Schlumberger (NYSE:SLB) last announced its earnings results on Friday, April 19th. The oil and gas company reported $0.75 EPS for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.75. The business had revenue of $8.71 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.70 billion. Schlumberger had a net margin of 12.72% and a return on equity of 21.88%. Schlumberger’s revenue was up 12.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.63 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Schlumberger will post 3.51 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 given a dividend of $0.275 per share. This represents a $1.10 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.24%. This is a boost from Schlumberger’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, June 5th. Schlumberger’s dividend payout ratio is currently 36.54%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Gavin Rennick sold 20,045 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $48.77, for a total transaction of $977,594.65. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 77,563 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,782,747.51. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other Schlumberger news, EVP Abdellah Merad sold 50,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $48.52, for a total value of $2,426,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 261,507 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,688,319.64. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Gavin Rennick sold 20,045 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $48.77, for a total transaction of $977,594.65. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 77,563 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,782,747.51. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 76,295 shares of company stock worth $3,707,595 in the last three months. 0.26% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Schlumberger

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in SLB. BluePath Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Schlumberger in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Schlumberger in the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. Register Financial Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Schlumberger in the 1st quarter valued at $27,000. Transcendent Capital Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Schlumberger in the 4th quarter valued at $32,000. Finally, Janiczek Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Schlumberger by 1,180.4% in the 4th quarter. Janiczek Wealth Management LLC now owns 653 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 602 shares during the last quarter. 81.99% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.