SLB Limited (NYSE:SLB) Sees Significant Increase in Short Interest

SLB Limited (NYSE:SLB) was the target of a large growth in short interest during the month of February. As of February 27th, there was short interest totaling 63,175,478 shares, a growth of 16.0% from the February 12th total of 54,457,251 shares. Approximately 4.2% of the company’s shares are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 14,730,425 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 4.3 days. Based on an average daily volume of 14,730,425 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 4.3 days. Approximately 4.2% of the company’s shares are short sold.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the company. Stifel Nicolaus set a $56.00 target price on SLB in a report on Monday, January 26th. Freedom Capital lowered shares of SLB from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 27th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their target price on shares of SLB from $53.00 to $60.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 4th. UBS Group restated a “buy” rating on shares of SLB in a research note on Tuesday, January 27th. Finally, Argus upgraded SLB to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, January 26th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have given a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, SLB currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $53.16.

SLB Stock Up 2.8%

Shares of SLB traded up $1.26 on Tuesday, hitting $46.22. 3,841,942 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 20,188,793. The company has a market capitalization of $69.44 billion, a PE ratio of 19.51, a P/E/G ratio of 3.12 and a beta of 0.68. SLB has a one year low of $31.11 and a one year high of $52.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a current ratio of 1.33. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $48.54 and a 200 day simple moving average of $40.53.

SLB (NYSE:SLB) last issued its earnings results on Friday, January 23rd. The oil and gas company reported $0.78 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.74 by $0.04. SLB had a return on equity of 17.45% and a net margin of 9.45%.The business had revenue of $9.75 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.54 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.92 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 5.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts forecast that SLB will post 3.38 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

SLB Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 2nd. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, February 11th will be paid a dividend of $0.295 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, February 11th. This represents a $1.18 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.6%. This is an increase from SLB’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. SLB’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 49.79%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CAO Howard Guild sold 13,268 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $49.70, for a total transaction of $659,419.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 22,407 shares in the company, valued at $1,113,627.90. This represents a 37.19% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Stephane Biguet sold 61,017 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, January 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $49.70, for a total value of $3,032,544.90. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 155,548 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,730,735.60. The trade was a 28.17% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 156,902 shares of company stock worth $7,796,666. Insiders own 0.16% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in SLB. Twin Peaks Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in SLB in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $25,000. MV Capital Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of SLB in the 4th quarter worth $28,000. Root Financial Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of SLB in the third quarter worth $29,000. Strategic Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in SLB during the fourth quarter valued at $30,000. Finally, Corsicana & Co. purchased a new stake in SLB during the third quarter valued at $31,000. 81.99% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About SLB

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.