Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. Boosts Stock Holdings in SLB Limited $SLB

Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. raised its position in shares of SLB Limited (NYSE:SLB) by 437.3% in the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 45,659 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after acquiring an additional 37,161 shares during the quarter. Johnson Investment Counsel Inc.’s holdings in SLB were worth $1,569,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Twin Peaks Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of SLB during the second quarter worth approximately $25,000. Root Financial Partners LLC acquired a new stake in SLB during the 3rd quarter worth $29,000. Corsicana & Co. purchased a new stake in shares of SLB during the third quarter worth $31,000. Strengthening Families & Communities LLC acquired a new stake in shares of SLB in the third quarter valued at about $31,000. Finally, NewSquare Capital LLC lifted its stake in shares of SLB by 51.4% in the second quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC now owns 1,004 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $34,000 after buying an additional 341 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.99% of the company’s stock.

SLB Trading Up 2.6%

SLB opened at $51.61 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $77.17 billion, a PE ratio of 21.78, a P/E/G ratio of 3.42 and a beta of 0.73. SLB Limited has a one year low of $31.11 and a one year high of $51.99. 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’s 50 day moving average price is $43.73 and its 200 day moving average price is $38.03.

SLB (NYSE:SLB) last posted its earnings results on Friday, January 23rd. The oil and gas company reported $0.78 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping 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 company had revenue of $9.75 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.54 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.92 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 5.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts expect that SLB Limited will post 3.38 EPS for the current year.

SLB Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 2nd. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 11th will be issued a $0.295 dividend. This is an increase from SLB’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, February 11th. This represents a $1.18 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.3%. SLB’s payout ratio is presently 48.10%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently issued reports on SLB shares. Rothschild & Co Redburn set a $48.00 price objective on shares of SLB in a research note on Monday, November 3rd. TD Cowen upped their price target on SLB from $56.00 to $57.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 11th. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their price target on SLB from $51.00 to $54.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, January 26th. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a “buy” rating and set a $49.00 price objective on shares of SLB in a research note on Wednesday, January 14th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on SLB from $53.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, January 26th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have given a Buy rating, three have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, SLB has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $52.38.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Dianne B. Ralston sold 18,617 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $49.50, for a total transaction of $921,541.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 224,097 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,092,801.50. This trade represents a 7.67% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Howard Guild sold 13,268 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $49.70, for a total value of $659,419.60. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 22,407 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,113,627.90. The trade was a 37.19% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 162,402 shares of company stock valued at $7,993,676 over the last three months. Company insiders own 0.22% of the company’s stock.

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.