Meritage Portfolio Management Has $723,000 Stock Holdings in Schlumberger Limited (NYSE:SLB)

Meritage Portfolio Management trimmed its position in Schlumberger Limited (NYSE:SLB) by 2.7% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 13,900 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after selling 385 shares during the period. Meritage Portfolio Management’s holdings in Schlumberger were worth $723,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. BluePath Capital Management LLC bought a new position in Schlumberger in the third quarter valued at about $25,000. Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Schlumberger in the 4th quarter worth about $26,000. MCF Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Schlumberger by 1,355.9% in the 3rd quarter. MCF Advisors LLC now owns 495 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 461 shares during the period. Janiczek Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Schlumberger by 1,180.4% in the 4th quarter. Janiczek Wealth Management LLC now owns 653 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 602 shares during the period. Finally, Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Schlumberger by 64.3% in the 4th quarter. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. now owns 746 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 292 shares during the period. 81.99% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Schlumberger Stock Performance

SLB traded down $0.12 during trading on Friday, hitting $49.32. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 4,738,702 shares, compared to its average volume of 11,140,355. The company has a quick ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49. Schlumberger Limited has a one year low of $42.73 and a one year high of $62.12. The firm has a market cap of $70.40 billion, a PE ratio of 16.43, a P/E/G ratio of 0.95 and a beta of 1.60. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $51.73 and its 200-day simple moving average is $52.23.

Schlumberger (NYSE:SLB) last issued its earnings results on Friday, April 19th. The oil and gas company reported $0.75 EPS for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.75. Schlumberger had a net margin of 12.72% and a return on equity of 21.88%. The business had revenue of $8.71 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $8.70 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.63 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 12.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side 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. Investors of record on Wednesday, June 5th will be given 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 2.23%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, June 5th. Schlumberger’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 36.54%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Abdellah Merad sold 50,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $48.52, for a total transaction of $2,426,000.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 261,507 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $12,688,319.64. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, CFO Stephane Biguet sold 6,250 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $52.78, for a total value of $329,875.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 249,182 shares in the company, valued at $13,151,825.96. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Abdellah Merad sold 50,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $48.52, for a total transaction of $2,426,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 261,507 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $12,688,319.64. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 90,545 shares of company stock worth $4,458,430. Insiders own 0.26% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Bank of America lowered their target price on shares of Schlumberger from $63.00 to $62.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday. HSBC restated a “buy” rating and set a $71.00 price target on shares of Schlumberger in a research report on Thursday, April 4th. 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. TD Cowen cut their target price on shares of Schlumberger from $64.00 to $63.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday. Finally, Barclays cut their price target on shares of Schlumberger from $74.00 to $70.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 4th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $69.67.

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.