Stock Traders Purchase Large Volume of Call Options on Schlumberger (NYSE:SLB)

Schlumberger Limited (NYSE:SLB) saw unusually large options trading activity on Tuesday. Traders acquired 29,086 call options on the company. This represents an increase of 34% compared to the average daily volume of 21,630 call options.

Schlumberger Price Performance

SLB opened at $43.94 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.13, a current ratio of 1.49 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55. The business has a fifty day moving average of $43.48 and a 200 day moving average of $46.87. Schlumberger has a 52-week low of $38.66 and a 52-week high of $61.20. The stock has a market cap of $62.39 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.60, a PEG ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 1.51.

Schlumberger (NYSE:SLB) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, July 19th. The oil and gas company reported $0.85 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.83 by $0.02. Schlumberger had a net margin of 12.56% and a return on equity of 21.92%. The company had revenue of $9.14 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.08 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.72 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Schlumberger will post 3.49 EPS for the current year.

Schlumberger Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 10th. Investors of record on Wednesday, September 4th will be issued a dividend of $0.275 per share. This represents a $1.10 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.50%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, September 4th. Schlumberger’s payout ratio is 36.54%.

Insider Transactions at Schlumberger

In related news, Director Vijay Kasibhatla sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $49.29, for a total transaction of $492,900.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 62,354 shares in the company, valued at $3,073,428.66. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In other Schlumberger news, Director Vijay Kasibhatla sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $49.29, for a total value of $492,900.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 62,354 shares in the company, valued at $3,073,428.66. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Mogharbel Khaled Al sold 120,668 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.19, for a total value of $6,056,326.92. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 247,699 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,432,012.81. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 180,716 shares of company stock worth $9,048,624. Company insiders own 0.26% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Schlumberger

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of SLB. Central Pacific Bank Trust Division boosted its stake in Schlumberger by 8.0% in the third quarter. Central Pacific Bank Trust Division now owns 45,363 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $1,903,000 after acquiring an additional 3,366 shares in the last quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV boosted its position in shares of Schlumberger by 113.6% in the 3rd quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV now owns 115,615 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $4,850,000 after purchasing an additional 61,485 shares in the last quarter. Trust Co. of Toledo NA OH grew its stake in Schlumberger by 12.5% during the 3rd quarter. Trust Co. of Toledo NA OH now owns 71,660 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $3,006,000 after buying an additional 7,968 shares during the last quarter. M&R Capital Management Inc. increased its position in Schlumberger by 1.7% during the 3rd quarter. M&R Capital Management Inc. now owns 14,817 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $622,000 after buying an additional 241 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mattson Financial Services LLC purchased a new stake in Schlumberger in the second quarter valued at about $1,558,000. Institutional investors own 81.99% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on SLB shares. Bank of America decreased their target price on shares of Schlumberger from $62.00 to $58.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, July 15th. Evercore ISI lifted their price objective on Schlumberger from $73.00 to $74.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, July 22nd. UBS Group cut their target price on Schlumberger from $63.00 to $57.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, September 18th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on Schlumberger from $65.00 to $60.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, September 16th. Finally, Benchmark reissued a “buy” rating and set a $68.00 price objective on shares of Schlumberger in a research report on Monday, July 22nd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nineteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $65.29.

Schlumberger Company Profile

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.