Venturi Wealth Management LLC Increases Stock Position in Schlumberger Limited (NYSE:SLB)

Venturi Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in Schlumberger Limited (NYSE:SLB) by 84.0% in the third quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 2,294 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after buying an additional 1,047 shares during the quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Schlumberger were worth $96,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Capital World Investors grew its position in Schlumberger by 72.3% in the first quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 88,950,956 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $4,875,402,000 after acquiring an additional 37,333,485 shares in the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD boosted its holdings in shares of Schlumberger by 14.1% in the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 85,986,039 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $4,712,897,000 after purchasing an additional 10,606,191 shares in the last quarter. Boston Partners boosted its holdings in shares of Schlumberger by 35.8% in the 1st quarter. Boston Partners now owns 11,640,827 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $635,883,000 after purchasing an additional 3,069,395 shares in the last quarter. Ceredex Value Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Schlumberger during the 2nd quarter valued at about $92,944,000. Finally, 1832 Asset Management L.P. bought a new stake in Schlumberger in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $91,364,000. Institutional investors own 81.99% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Schlumberger

In related news, EVP Abdellah Merad sold 60,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $41.90, for a total transaction of $2,514,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 211,937 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,880,160.30. This trade represents a 22.06 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.26% of the company’s stock.

Schlumberger Stock Performance

Shares of SLB opened at $43.45 on Friday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $42.31 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $44.76. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52, a current ratio of 1.48 and a quick ratio of 1.12. The firm has a market capitalization of $61.36 billion, a PE ratio of 13.97, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.56 and a beta of 1.52. Schlumberger Limited has a one year low of $38.66 and a one year high of $55.69.

Schlumberger (NYSE:SLB) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, October 18th. The oil and gas company reported $0.89 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.88 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $9.16 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.27 billion. Schlumberger had a return on equity of 21.84% and a net margin of 12.44%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.78 earnings per share. On average, analysts anticipate that Schlumberger Limited will post 3.4 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Schlumberger Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 9th. Investors of record on Wednesday, December 4th will be paid a dividend of $0.275 per share. This represents a $1.10 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.53%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, December 4th. Schlumberger’s payout ratio is currently 35.37%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have commented on the stock. Evercore ISI reduced their price target on shares of Schlumberger from $74.00 to $62.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, October 21st. Barclays decreased their target price on shares of Schlumberger from $67.00 to $63.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Benchmark reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $68.00 price objective on shares of Schlumberger in a research note on Monday, July 22nd. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $69.00 target price on shares of Schlumberger in a research note on Thursday, October 3rd. Finally, Susquehanna reduced their price target on Schlumberger from $60.00 to $56.00 and set a “positive” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, October 21st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $60.97.

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.