Schwartz Investment Counsel Inc. Acquires 10,000 Shares of SLB Limited $SLB

Schwartz Investment Counsel Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of SLB Limited (NYSE:SLB) by 3.2% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 327,300 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after purchasing an additional 10,000 shares during the period. Schwartz Investment Counsel Inc.’s holdings in SLB were worth $12,562,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Ballentine Partners LLC lifted its stake in shares of SLB by 2.2% in the 4th quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC now owns 10,288 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $395,000 after acquiring an additional 218 shares during the last quarter. Foster Victor Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of SLB by 3.0% in the 4th quarter. Foster Victor Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 8,281 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $318,000 after acquiring an additional 238 shares during the last quarter. Avidian Wealth Enterprises LLC lifted its stake in shares of SLB by 1.6% in the 4th quarter. Avidian Wealth Enterprises LLC now owns 16,574 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $636,000 after acquiring an additional 254 shares during the last quarter. apricus wealth LLC lifted its stake in shares of SLB by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. apricus wealth LLC now owns 84,740 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $3,252,000 after acquiring an additional 270 shares during the last quarter. Finally, ABN AMRO Bank N.V. lifted its stake in shares of SLB by 1.8% in the 4th quarter. ABN AMRO Bank N.V. now owns 15,221 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $582,000 after acquiring an additional 275 shares during the last quarter. 81.99% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

SLB Stock Up 1.3%

Shares of NYSE:SLB opened at $55.67 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $83.23 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.31, a P/E/G ratio of 3.87 and a beta of 0.72. The company has a quick ratio of 0.98, a current ratio of 1.34 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35. SLB Limited has a 12-month low of $31.64 and a 12-month high of $57.20. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $51.06 and a 200 day simple moving average of $45.36.

SLB (NYSE:SLB) last announced its earnings results on Saturday, April 25th. The oil and gas company reported $0.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.51 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $8.72 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.76 billion. SLB had a return on equity of 15.54% and a net margin of 9.26%.SLB’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.72 EPS. Analysts predict that SLB Limited will post 2.61 earnings per share for the current year.

SLB Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 9th. Investors of record on Wednesday, June 3rd will be given a dividend of $0.295 per share. This represents a $1.18 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, June 3rd. SLB’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 51.53%.

Insider Buying and Selling at SLB

In related news, Director La Chevardiere Patrick De sold 2,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $54.33, for a total transaction of $108,660.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 16,953 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $921,056.49. This trade represents a 10.55% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Steve Matthew Gassen sold 53,379 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $56.18, for a total value of $2,998,832.22. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 47,421 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,664,111.78. This represents a 52.96% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 0.16% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have recently commented on SLB shares. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $61.00 price target on shares of SLB in a research note on Monday, April 27th. Morgan Stanley set a $57.00 price target on SLB in a research note on Monday, April 27th. Weiss Ratings cut SLB from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. Citigroup increased their price target on SLB from $59.00 to $68.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Finally, Barclays increased their price target on SLB from $49.00 to $51.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, April 27th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have assigned a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $59.74.

SLB Company Profile

SLB (NYSE: SLB), historically known as Schlumberger, is a leading global provider of technology, integrated project management and information solutions for the energy industry. Founded by Conrad and Marcel Schlumberger in 1926, the company develops and supplies products and services used across the exploration, drilling, completion and production phases of oil and gas development. Its offerings are intended to help operators characterize reservoirs, drill and complete wells, optimize production and manage field operations throughout the asset lifecycle.

SLB’s product and service portfolio spans reservoir characterization and well testing, wireline and logging services, directional drilling and drilling tools, well construction and completion technologies, production systems, and subsea equipment.