Everence Capital Management Inc. Sells 54,990 Shares of Schlumberger Limited (NYSE:SLB)

Everence Capital Management Inc. cut its stake in shares of Schlumberger Limited (NYSE:SLB) by 49.6% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 55,936 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after selling 54,990 shares during the quarter. Everence Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Schlumberger were worth $2,145,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky grew its stake in shares of Schlumberger by 25.9% during the third quarter. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky now owns 761,875 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $31,961,000 after buying an additional 156,698 shares during the last quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB grew its position in Schlumberger by 27.0% during the 3rd quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 76,838 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $3,223,000 after acquiring an additional 16,350 shares during the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. increased its holdings in Schlumberger by 8.7% in the 3rd quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 817,771 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $34,305,000 after purchasing an additional 65,318 shares in the last quarter. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC raised its position in Schlumberger by 269.1% in the third quarter. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC now owns 19,718 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $827,000 after purchasing an additional 14,376 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Public Sector Pension Investment Board boosted its stake in shares of Schlumberger by 0.6% during the second quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 1,901,713 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $89,723,000 after purchasing an additional 11,813 shares in the last quarter. 81.99% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on SLB. Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded shares of Schlumberger to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 12th. Atb Cap Markets downgraded shares of Schlumberger from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on shares of Schlumberger from $65.00 to $60.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, September 16th. Citigroup lowered their target price on Schlumberger from $53.00 to $50.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. Finally, Griffin Securities lowered Schlumberger from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, December 20th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Schlumberger currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $58.25.

Insider Buying and Selling at Schlumberger

In related news, EVP Abdellah Merad sold 60,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $41.90, for a total value of $2,514,000.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 211,937 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,880,160.30. This trade represents a 22.06 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.26% of the company’s stock.

Schlumberger Price Performance

SLB stock opened at $38.59 on Friday. Schlumberger Limited has a 1 year low of $36.52 and a 1 year high of $55.69. The stock has a market capitalization of $54.50 billion, a PE ratio of 12.41, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 1.51. The company’s 50-day moving average is $41.19 and its 200-day moving average is $43.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52, a current ratio of 1.48 and a quick ratio of 1.12.

Schlumberger (NYSE:SLB) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, October 18th. The oil and gas company reported $0.89 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.88 by $0.01. Schlumberger had a return on equity of 21.84% and a net margin of 12.44%. The firm had revenue of $9.16 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.27 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.78 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts expect that Schlumberger Limited will post 3.39 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Schlumberger Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 9th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, December 4th will be issued a dividend of $0.275 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, December 4th. This represents a $1.10 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.85%. Schlumberger’s payout ratio is 35.37%.

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.