Lazard Asset Management LLC Acquires 3,514,134 Shares of Schlumberger Limited (NYSE:SLB)

Lazard Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in Schlumberger Limited (NYSE:SLB) by 3,112.1% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 3,627,051 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after acquiring an additional 3,514,134 shares during the period. Lazard Asset Management LLC owned approximately 0.26% of Schlumberger worth $139,059,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. YANKCOM Partnership bought a new position in shares of Schlumberger in the fourth quarter worth approximately $31,000. Stonebridge Financial Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Schlumberger in the fourth quarter worth $32,000. Golden State Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Schlumberger during the 4th quarter valued at $34,000. Hager Investment Management Services LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Schlumberger in the 4th quarter worth $38,000. Finally, Bogart Wealth LLC raised its holdings in Schlumberger by 468.9% in the 4th quarter. Bogart Wealth LLC now owns 1,024 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 844 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 81.99% of the company’s stock.

Schlumberger Price Performance

Schlumberger stock opened at $34.51 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49, a current ratio of 1.45 and a quick ratio of 1.11. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $37.18 and a 200-day simple moving average of $39.73. Schlumberger Limited has a 12 month low of $31.11 and a 12 month high of $50.94. The stock has a market capitalization of $46.94 billion, a PE ratio of 11.10, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 10.10 and a beta of 1.06.

Schlumberger (NYSE:SLB) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, April 25th. The oil and gas company reported $0.72 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.73 by ($0.01). Schlumberger had a return on equity of 21.90% and a net margin of 12.29%. The firm had revenue of $8.49 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.64 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.75 EPS. The business’s revenue was down 2.5% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts predict that Schlumberger Limited will post 3.38 earnings per share for the current year.

Schlumberger Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 10th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, June 4th will be paid a dividend of $0.285 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, June 4th. This represents a $1.14 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.30%. Schlumberger’s dividend payout ratio is currently 38.64%.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Gavin Rennick sold 26,990 shares of Schlumberger stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $40.92, for a total transaction of $1,104,430.80. Following the sale, the insider now owns 53,584 shares in the company, valued at $2,192,657.28. This trade represents a 33.50% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Aparna Raman sold 25,133 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $42.28, for a total transaction of $1,062,623.24. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 31,031 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,311,990.68. This trade represents a 44.75% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.26% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on SLB. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $57.00 price objective on shares of Schlumberger in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded Schlumberger from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and lowered their price objective for the company from $46.00 to $44.00 in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their price target on Schlumberger from $60.00 to $59.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, March 27th. Susquehanna reduced their price objective on shares of Schlumberger from $48.00 to $46.00 and set a “positive” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 28th. Finally, TD Cowen upped their target price on shares of Schlumberger from $53.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $53.32.

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.