Clifford Swan Investment Counsel LLC Reduces Position in Schlumberger Limited (NYSE:SLB)

Clifford Swan Investment Counsel LLC reduced its holdings in Schlumberger Limited (NYSE:SLB) by 4.5% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 371,683 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after selling 17,672 shares during the period. Clifford Swan Investment Counsel LLC’s holdings in Schlumberger were worth $19,342,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of SLB. Gallacher Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Schlumberger in the fourth quarter valued at about $253,000. Clearstead Trust LLC grew its stake in shares of Schlumberger by 9.0% in the 4th quarter. Clearstead Trust LLC now owns 31,317 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $1,630,000 after buying an additional 2,591 shares during the period. River Global Investors LLP acquired a new stake in shares of Schlumberger during the 4th quarter worth approximately $4,423,000. National Bank of Canada FI raised its position in shares of Schlumberger by 9.1% during the 4th quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 344,745 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $17,971,000 after buying an additional 28,618 shares during the period. Finally, Red Cedar Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in Schlumberger by 6.9% in the fourth quarter. Red Cedar Investment Management LLC now owns 21,242 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $1,105,000 after acquiring an additional 1,369 shares during the last quarter. 81.99% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the company. Benchmark restated a “buy” rating and issued a $68.00 target price on shares of Schlumberger in a research report on Monday, April 22nd. Susquehanna restated a “positive” rating and issued a $77.00 price objective on shares of Schlumberger in a report on Monday, April 22nd. Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on shares of Schlumberger from $66.00 to $69.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 3rd. Stifel Nicolaus reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $64.00 price objective on shares of Schlumberger in a research report on Monday, April 22nd. Finally, Morgan Stanley reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $65.00 target price on shares of Schlumberger in a research report on Monday, April 22nd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seventeen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Schlumberger has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $68.72.

Schlumberger Stock Up 0.2 %

Schlumberger stock traded up $0.08 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $47.66. 11,007,407 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 9,961,223. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $51.63 and a two-hundred day moving average of $51.67. The company has a current ratio of 1.37, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49. Schlumberger Limited has a 1-year low of $42.73 and a 1-year high of $62.12. The stock has a market cap of $68.12 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.83, a P/E/G ratio of 0.92 and a beta of 1.64.

Schlumberger (NYSE:SLB) last released its 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 during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $8.70 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.63 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 12.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts anticipate that Schlumberger Limited will post 3.51 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Schlumberger Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 11th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, June 5th will be paid a dividend of $0.275 per share. This is a positive change from Schlumberger’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. This represents a $1.10 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.31%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, June 5th. Schlumberger’s dividend payout ratio is currently 36.54%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Schlumberger

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