Schlumberger (NYSE:SLB) Rating Increased to Strong-Buy at Sanford C. Bernstein

Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded shares of Schlumberger (NYSE:SLB) to a strong-buy rating in a report published on Tuesday,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other research analysts also recently issued reports on SLB. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on shares of Schlumberger from $53.00 to $49.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, September 25th. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $69.00 price objective on shares of Schlumberger in a research report on Thursday, October 3rd. TD Cowen decreased their price target on Schlumberger from $68.00 to $65.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, October 21st. UBS Group cut their price objective on Schlumberger from $63.00 to $57.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, September 18th. Finally, Citigroup lowered their target price on Schlumberger from $60.00 to $54.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $60.97.

Schlumberger Stock Performance

Shares of SLB opened at $43.59 on Tuesday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $42.31 and a 200-day moving average price of $44.76. The firm has a market cap of $61.56 billion, a PE ratio of 14.02, a P/E/G ratio of 1.56 and a beta of 1.52. Schlumberger has a 12 month low of $38.66 and a 12 month high of $55.69. The company has a current ratio of 1.48, a quick ratio of 1.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52.

Schlumberger (NYSE:SLB) last posted its earnings results on Friday, October 18th. The oil and gas company reported $0.89 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.88 by $0.01. Schlumberger had a return on equity of 21.84% and a net margin of 12.44%. The company had revenue of $9.16 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.27 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.78 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.2% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts predict that Schlumberger will post 3.4 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Schlumberger Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 9th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, December 4th will be given a dividend of $0.275 per share. This represents a $1.10 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.52%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, December 4th. Schlumberger’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 35.37%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Abdellah Merad sold 60,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $41.90, for a total value of $2,514,000.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 211,937 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,880,160.30. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.26% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. increased its stake in shares of Schlumberger by 11.5% during the first quarter. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. now owns 27,713 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $1,519,000 after purchasing an additional 2,866 shares in the last quarter. Kingsview Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in Schlumberger by 114.9% during the first quarter. Kingsview Wealth Management LLC now owns 52,858 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $2,897,000 after acquiring an additional 28,256 shares during the last quarter. Banco Santander S.A. raised its holdings in Schlumberger by 7.2% in the 1st quarter. Banco Santander S.A. now owns 26,169 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $1,434,000 after acquiring an additional 1,748 shares during the last quarter. M&G Plc acquired a new position in shares of Schlumberger during the 1st quarter worth approximately $16,509,000. Finally, Councilmark Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Schlumberger in the first quarter valued at approximately $415,000. 81.99% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.