Schlumberger Limited (NYSE:SLB) Shares Sold by CENTRAL TRUST Co

CENTRAL TRUST Co cut its holdings in shares of Schlumberger Limited (NYSE:SLB) by 41.8% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 19,881 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after selling 14,265 shares during the period. CENTRAL TRUST Co’s holdings in Schlumberger were worth $763,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the business. ORG Partners LLC increased its stake in Schlumberger by 393.5% in the third quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 607 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 484 shares during the period. Prospera Private Wealth LLC acquired a new position in Schlumberger in the 3rd quarter valued at about $29,000. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC purchased a new stake in Schlumberger during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $37,000. DiNuzzo Private Wealth Inc. lifted its position in Schlumberger by 1,068.3% during the 3rd quarter. DiNuzzo Private Wealth Inc. now owns 958 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $40,000 after acquiring an additional 876 shares during the period. Finally, J. Stern & Co. LLP purchased a new position in shares of Schlumberger in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $47,000. 81.99% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on Schlumberger from $49.00 to $46.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of Schlumberger from $48.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their price target on shares of Schlumberger from $64.00 to $61.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 3rd. BMO Capital Markets reduced their price objective on shares of Schlumberger from $53.00 to $48.00 in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. Finally, Bank of America cut their target price on Schlumberger from $58.00 to $54.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, October 14th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $55.81.

Insider Buying and Selling at Schlumberger

In other Schlumberger news, insider Bejar Carmen Rando sold 5,524 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.41, for a total transaction of $223,224.84. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 30,829 shares in the company, valued at $1,245,799.89. This trade represents a 15.20 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, VP Ugo Prechner sold 7,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $44.20, for a total transaction of $309,400.00. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 11,240 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $496,808. The trade was a 38.38 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 263,782 shares of company stock valued at $11,442,229 over the last three months. 0.26% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Schlumberger Price Performance

SLB stock opened at $40.16 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $56.26 billion, a PE ratio of 12.91, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 9.55 and a beta of 1.51. The company has a current ratio of 1.45, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $40.49 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $42.49. Schlumberger Limited has a 12-month low of $36.52 and a 12-month high of $55.69.

Schlumberger (NYSE:SLB) last issued its earnings results on Friday, January 17th. The oil and gas company reported $0.92 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.90 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $9.28 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.24 billion. Schlumberger had a return on equity of 21.90% and a net margin of 12.29%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.86 EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that Schlumberger Limited will post 3.38 EPS for the current year.

Schlumberger Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 3rd. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 5th will be issued a $0.285 dividend. This is an increase from Schlumberger’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.28. This represents a $1.14 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.84%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, February 5th. Schlumberger’s dividend payout ratio is currently 35.37%.

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.