Syon Capital LLC Grows Stake in Schlumberger Limited (NYSE:SLB)

Syon Capital LLC raised its stake in Schlumberger Limited (NYSE:SLB) by 9.8% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 20,643 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,848 shares during the quarter. Syon Capital LLC’s holdings in Schlumberger were worth $1,074,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in SLB. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Schlumberger by 1.1% during the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 130,528,372 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $7,609,804,000 after acquiring an additional 1,412,821 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC boosted its stake in Schlumberger by 1.1% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 27,171,516 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $1,584,099,000 after acquiring an additional 282,709 shares during the period. Morgan Stanley raised its holdings in shares of Schlumberger by 1.9% during the third quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 15,790,074 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $920,561,000 after buying an additional 292,817 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. raised its holdings in Schlumberger by 30.5% during the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 8,370,835 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $488,020,000 after purchasing an additional 1,954,620 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sanders Capital LLC raised its holdings in Schlumberger by 34.9% during the third quarter. Sanders Capital LLC now owns 8,056,492 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $469,693,000 after purchasing an additional 2,085,506 shares in the last quarter. 81.99% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Schlumberger Stock Performance

Shares of Schlumberger stock traded up $0.33 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $49.44. The company had a trading volume of 7,961,578 shares, compared to its average volume of 11,221,671. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $51.71 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $52.25. The stock has a market cap of $70.57 billion, a PE ratio of 16.37, a P/E/G ratio of 0.96 and a beta of 1.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49, a current ratio of 1.37 and a quick ratio of 1.02. Schlumberger Limited has a 1-year low of $42.73 and a 1-year high of $62.12.

Schlumberger (NYSE:SLB) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, April 19th. The oil and gas company reported $0.75 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.75. Schlumberger had a return on equity of 21.88% and a net margin of 12.72%. The company had revenue of $8.71 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $8.70 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.63 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 12.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts predict that Schlumberger Limited will post 3.5 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Schlumberger Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 11th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, June 5th will be issued a dividend of $0.275 per share. This is a boost from Schlumberger’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. This represents a $1.10 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.22%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, June 5th. Schlumberger’s payout ratio is currently 36.54%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CFO Stephane Biguet sold 6,250 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $52.78, for a total transaction of $329,875.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 249,182 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,151,825.96. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In other Schlumberger news, CFO Stephane Biguet sold 6,250 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $52.78, for a total value of $329,875.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 249,182 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,151,825.96. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Abdellah Merad sold 50,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 261,507 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,688,319.64. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 90,545 shares of company stock valued at $4,458,430. 0.26% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have issued reports on SLB shares. Barclays decreased their price target on shares of Schlumberger from $74.00 to $70.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 4th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on Schlumberger from $69.00 to $70.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, January 22nd. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price target on shares of Schlumberger from $66.00 to $69.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 3rd. HSBC reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $71.00 price target on shares of Schlumberger in a research report on Thursday, April 4th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reduced their price target on shares of Schlumberger from $66.00 to $64.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $69.67.

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.