Schlumberger Target of Unusually High Options Trading (NYSE:SLB)

Schlumberger Limited (NYSE:SLB) was the target of unusually large options trading activity on Friday. Traders bought 44,442 call options on the stock. This represents an increase of 55% compared to the average daily volume of 28,642 call options.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

SLB has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Barclays cut their price target on shares of Schlumberger from $61.00 to $53.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, December 18th. Sanford C. Bernstein raised Schlumberger to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 12th. Bank of America lowered their price target on Schlumberger from $58.00 to $54.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, October 14th. Evercore ISI reaffirmed an “in-line” rating and issued a $44.00 price target (down from $62.00) on shares of Schlumberger in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, Piper Sandler began coverage on Schlumberger in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $47.00 target price for the company. 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 company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $56.03.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Abdellah Merad sold 60,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $41.90, for a total transaction of $2,514,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 211,937 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,880,160.30. This trade represents a 22.06 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.26% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Schlumberger

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. 1832 Asset Management L.P. bought a new stake in Schlumberger in the second quarter valued at approximately $91,364,000. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC increased its position in shares of Schlumberger by 20.6% in the 3rd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 11,213,944 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $470,425,000 after buying an additional 1,916,851 shares in the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc raised its stake in Schlumberger by 14.0% during the 2nd quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 12,686,384 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $598,544,000 after buying an additional 1,560,684 shares during the period. Merewether Investment Management LP bought a new position in Schlumberger during the second quarter worth about $42,957,000. Finally, Weiss Asset Management LP acquired a new position in Schlumberger in the third quarter valued at about $37,322,000. 81.99% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Schlumberger Stock Up 6.1 %

NYSE:SLB opened at $43.58 on Friday. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $40.86 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $42.90. The company has a market cap of $61.54 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.01, a P/E/G ratio of 1.35 and a beta of 1.52. Schlumberger has a 52-week low of $36.52 and a 52-week high of $55.69. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52, a quick ratio of 1.12 and a current ratio of 1.48.

Schlumberger (NYSE:SLB) last issued its earnings results on Friday, January 17th. The oil and gas company reported $0.92 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.90 by $0.02. Schlumberger had a net margin of 12.44% and a return on equity of 21.84%. The company had revenue of $9.28 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9,241,140 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.86 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.3% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts anticipate that Schlumberger will post 3.39 EPS for the current 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 $0.285 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, February 5th. This is a boost from Schlumberger’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.28. This represents a $1.14 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.62%. Schlumberger’s dividend payout ratio is 35.37%.

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.