Kovack Advisors Inc. Grows Position in Schlumberger Limited (NYSE:SLB)

Kovack Advisors Inc. raised its position in Schlumberger Limited (NYSE:SLB) by 149.3% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 40,893 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after purchasing an additional 24,489 shares during the period. Kovack Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Schlumberger were worth $2,128,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of SLB. BluePath Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in Schlumberger in the 3rd quarter worth about $25,000. MCF Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Schlumberger by 1,355.9% in the 3rd quarter. MCF Advisors LLC now owns 495 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 461 shares during the period. Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Schlumberger in the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Janiczek Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in Schlumberger by 1,180.4% in the 4th quarter. Janiczek Wealth Management LLC now owns 653 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 602 shares during the period. Finally, Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. grew its holdings in Schlumberger by 64.3% in the 4th quarter. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. now owns 746 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $39,000 after buying an additional 292 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.99% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

SLB has been the topic of several recent research reports. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price target on Schlumberger from $66.00 to $69.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 3rd. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $65.00 target price on shares of Schlumberger in a research report on Monday. Bank of America cut their target price on Schlumberger from $63.00 to $62.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday. TD Cowen cut their target price on Schlumberger from $64.00 to $63.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Schlumberger in a research report on Monday, April 1st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $69.67.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CFO Stephane Biguet sold 6,250 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $52.78, for a total transaction of $329,875.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 249,182 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,151,825.96. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In related news, CFO Stephane Biguet sold 6,250 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, January 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $52.78, for a total transaction of $329,875.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 249,182 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $13,151,825.96. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Abdellah Merad sold 50,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction 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 directly owns 261,507 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $12,688,319.64. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 90,545 shares of company stock worth $4,458,430. 0.26% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Schlumberger Stock Performance

NYSE:SLB traded down $0.24 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $49.20. 8,247,654 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 11,185,043. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $51.74 and a two-hundred day moving average of $52.17. Schlumberger Limited has a 12 month low of $42.73 and a 12 month high of $62.12. The firm has a market capitalization of $70.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.35, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.95 and a beta of 1.60. The company has a current ratio of 1.37, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49.

Schlumberger (NYSE:SLB) last announced its earnings results on Friday, April 19th. The oil and gas company reported $0.75 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.75. Schlumberger had a return on equity of 21.88% and a net margin of 12.72%. The firm had revenue of $8.71 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.70 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.63 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts forecast that Schlumberger Limited will post 3.5 earnings per share 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 given a $0.275 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, June 5th. This represents a $1.10 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.24%. This is an increase from Schlumberger’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. Schlumberger’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 36.54%.

Schlumberger Profile

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.