South Dakota Investment Council Has $16.87 Million Stock Holdings in Schlumberger Limited (NYSE:SLB)

South Dakota Investment Council trimmed its position in Schlumberger Limited (NYSE:SLB) by 2.6% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 324,229 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after selling 8,600 shares during the quarter. South Dakota Investment Council’s holdings in Schlumberger were worth $16,873,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Ritholtz Wealth Management lifted its stake in shares of Schlumberger by 46.5% during the 3rd quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management now owns 11,978 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $698,000 after buying an additional 3,802 shares during the last quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC increased its position in Schlumberger by 14.1% during the third quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 3,563 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $199,000 after acquiring an additional 440 shares during the period. Montecito Bank & Trust acquired a new stake in Schlumberger in the 3rd quarter worth about $245,000. DAVENPORT & Co LLC boosted its holdings in Schlumberger by 0.9% in the 3rd quarter. DAVENPORT & Co LLC now owns 54,995 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $3,206,000 after purchasing an additional 506 shares during the period. Finally, GHP Investment Advisors Inc. grew its position in shares of Schlumberger by 68.8% during the 3rd quarter. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 1,722 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $102,000 after purchasing an additional 702 shares in the last quarter. 81.99% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have recently commented on SLB. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of Schlumberger from $69.00 to $70.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, January 22nd. HSBC reissued a “buy” rating and set a $71.00 price target on shares of Schlumberger in a report on Thursday, April 4th. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $65.00 price objective on shares of Schlumberger in a research note on Monday. Bank of America lowered their target price on Schlumberger from $63.00 to $62.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price target on shares of Schlumberger from $66.00 to $69.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 3rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $69.67.

Schlumberger Stock Up 0.1 %

Shares of NYSE SLB traded up $0.04 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $49.55. The stock had a trading volume of 11,135,591 shares, compared to its average volume of 11,276,809. 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 fifty day moving average of $51.68 and a two-hundred day moving average of $52.28. Schlumberger Limited has a 12 month low of $42.73 and a 12 month high of $62.12. The company has a market capitalization of $70.73 billion, a PE ratio of 16.46, a PEG ratio of 0.95 and a beta of 1.60.

Schlumberger (NYSE:SLB) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, April 19th. The oil and gas company reported $0.75 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.75. The firm had revenue of $8.71 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.70 billion. Schlumberger had a return on equity of 21.88% and a net margin of 12.72%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.63 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Schlumberger Limited will post 3.51 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. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, June 5th will be issued a dividend of $0.275 per share. This represents a $1.10 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.22%. This is a positive change from Schlumberger’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, June 5th. Schlumberger’s dividend payout ratio is 36.54%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Abdellah Merad sold 50,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $48.52, for a total transaction of $2,426,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 261,507 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,688,319.64. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other Schlumberger news, EVP Abdellah Merad sold 50,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $48.52, for a total value of $2,426,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 261,507 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,688,319.64. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CFO Stephane Biguet sold 6,250 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $48.64, for a total value of $304,000.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 242,932 shares in the company, valued at $11,816,212.48. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 133,621 shares of company stock valued at $6,691,623 over the last ninety days. 0.26% of the stock is currently owned by 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.