Maryland State Retirement & Pension System Has $5.77 Million Position in Schlumberger Limited (NYSE:SLB)

Maryland State Retirement & Pension System increased its position in shares of Schlumberger Limited (NYSE:SLB) by 1.1% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 110,911 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after buying an additional 1,181 shares during the quarter. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System’s holdings in Schlumberger were worth $5,772,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in SLB. BluePath Capital Management LLC bought a new position in Schlumberger during the third quarter worth about $25,000. Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Schlumberger in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Janiczek Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Schlumberger by 1,180.4% in the fourth quarter. Janiczek Wealth Management LLC now owns 653 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 602 shares during the last quarter. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. raised its stake in shares of Schlumberger by 64.3% in the fourth quarter. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. now owns 746 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $39,000 after acquiring an additional 292 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Legacy Bridge LLC raised its stake in shares of Schlumberger by 39.4% in the fourth quarter. Legacy Bridge LLC now owns 853 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $44,000 after acquiring an additional 241 shares during the last quarter. 81.99% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Schlumberger Stock Up 0.7 %

Shares of SLB traded up $0.31 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $47.97. The stock had a trading volume of 9,857,742 shares, compared to its average volume of 11,153,605. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $51.62 and a 200-day simple moving average of $51.58. Schlumberger Limited has a 1-year low of $42.73 and a 1-year high of $62.12. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49, a current ratio of 1.37 and a quick ratio of 1.02. The firm has a market capitalization of $68.57 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.94, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.92 and a beta of 1.64.

Schlumberger (NYSE:SLB) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, April 19th. The oil and gas company reported $0.75 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate 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 for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $8.70 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.63 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts predict that Schlumberger Limited will post 3.51 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Schlumberger Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 11th. Investors of record on Wednesday, June 5th will be issued a dividend of $0.275 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, June 5th. This is a boost from Schlumberger’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. This represents a $1.10 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.29%. Schlumberger’s payout ratio is 36.54%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

SLB has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. BMO Capital Markets cut their target price on shares of Schlumberger from $66.00 to $64.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 22nd. Morgan Stanley restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $65.00 price objective on shares of Schlumberger in a research report on Monday, April 22nd. HSBC restated a “buy” rating and issued a $71.00 price objective on shares of Schlumberger in a research report on Thursday, April 4th. TD Cowen lowered their target price on shares of Schlumberger from $64.00 to $63.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 22nd. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $64.00 target price on shares of Schlumberger in a report on Monday, April 22nd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seventeen have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $68.72.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Schlumberger news, EVP Abdellah Merad sold 50,000 shares of Schlumberger stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the executive vice president now owns 261,507 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $12,688,319.64. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other news, 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 sale, the executive vice president now owns 261,507 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $12,688,319.64. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CFO Stephane Biguet sold 6,250 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $48.64, for a total transaction of $304,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 242,932 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,816,212.48. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.26% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.