Van ECK Associates Corp Sells 273,826 Shares of Schlumberger Limited (NYSE:SLB)

Van ECK Associates Corp cut its position in shares of Schlumberger Limited (NYSE:SLB) by 2.9% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 9,043,289 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after selling 273,826 shares during the quarter. Schlumberger makes up about 0.9% of Van ECK Associates Corp’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 28th largest position. Van ECK Associates Corp owned 0.63% of Schlumberger worth $470,613,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. BluePath Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Schlumberger during the third quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in Schlumberger in the 4th quarter worth $26,000. Janiczek Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Schlumberger by 1,180.4% during 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 in the last quarter. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. increased its position in shares of Schlumberger by 64.3% during the fourth quarter. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. now owns 746 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $39,000 after buying an additional 292 shares during the period. Finally, Legacy Bridge LLC raised its stake in Schlumberger by 39.4% in the fourth quarter. Legacy Bridge LLC now owns 853 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $44,000 after buying an additional 241 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 81.99% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Schlumberger

In related news, CFO Stephane Biguet sold 6,250 shares of Schlumberger stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 242,932 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,816,212.48. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In related news, insider Gavin Rennick sold 20,045 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction 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 in the company, valued at $3,782,747.51. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Stephane Biguet sold 6,250 shares of Schlumberger stock in a transaction 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 completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 242,932 shares in the company, valued at $11,816,212.48. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 76,295 shares of company stock valued at $3,707,595 over the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.26% of the company’s stock.

Schlumberger Stock Performance

Schlumberger stock traded up $0.01 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $49.21. 9,211,325 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 11,160,987. The firm has a market capitalization of $70.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.25, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.95 and a beta of 1.60. Schlumberger Limited has a 12 month low of $42.73 and a 12 month high of $62.12. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49, a current ratio of 1.37 and a quick ratio of 1.02. The business has a 50 day moving average of $51.74 and a two-hundred day moving average of $52.08.

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

Schlumberger Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 11th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, June 5th will be issued a dividend of $0.275 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, June 5th. This represents a $1.10 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.24%. This is an increase from Schlumberger’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. Schlumberger’s payout ratio is currently 36.54%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on SLB shares. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Schlumberger in a research report on Monday, April 1st. Bank of America dropped their target price on shares of Schlumberger from $63.00 to $62.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 22nd. Stifel Nicolaus reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $64.00 price target on shares of Schlumberger in a research note on Monday, April 22nd. TD Cowen dropped their price objective on shares of Schlumberger from $64.00 to $63.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 22nd. Finally, Benchmark reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $68.00 target price on shares of Schlumberger in a research note on Monday, April 22nd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seventeen have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Schlumberger has a consensus 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.