Core Laboratories (NYSE:CLB) Shares Gap Down – Here’s Why

Shares of Core Laboratories Inc. (NYSE:CLB) gapped down before the market opened on Monday . The stock had previously closed at $19.43, but opened at $18.76. Core Laboratories shares last traded at $18.77, with a volume of 21,196 shares trading hands.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have weighed in on CLB shares. Bank of America decreased their price objective on shares of Core Laboratories from $16.00 to $15.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, July 15th. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price target on Core Laboratories from $18.00 to $22.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, July 26th. Piper Sandler cut their price objective on Core Laboratories from $18.00 to $17.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, July 15th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered Core Laboratories from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 17th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and two have given a hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Core Laboratories presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $18.00.

Core Laboratories Trading Down 1.2 %

The company has a quick ratio of 1.68, a current ratio of 2.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60. The business’s fifty day moving average is $18.53 and its two-hundred day moving average is $18.99. The firm has a market cap of $900.48 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.08, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.08 and a beta of 2.36.

Core Laboratories (NYSE:CLB) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The oil and gas company reported $0.25 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.21 by $0.04. Core Laboratories had a return on equity of 15.20% and a net margin of 5.44%. The company had revenue of $134.40 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $134.16 million. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.22 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.2% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts anticipate that Core Laboratories Inc. will post 0.8 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Core Laboratories Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 25th. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 4th will be given a dividend of $0.01 per share. This represents a $0.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.21%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, November 4th. Core Laboratories’s dividend payout ratio is 4.55%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Core Laboratories

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of CLB. Ariel Investments LLC lifted its stake in shares of Core Laboratories by 20.4% in the 1st quarter. Ariel Investments LLC now owns 10,825,657 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $184,902,000 after purchasing an additional 1,837,258 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Core Laboratories by 0.5% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 5,392,034 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $92,096,000 after buying an additional 27,701 shares during the period. Disciplined Growth Investors Inc. MN increased its stake in shares of Core Laboratories by 446.8% in the 2nd quarter. Disciplined Growth Investors Inc. MN now owns 4,460,720 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $90,508,000 after acquiring an additional 3,644,963 shares during the last quarter. Earnest Partners LLC increased its stake in shares of Core Laboratories by 6.3% in the 2nd quarter. Earnest Partners LLC now owns 3,286,438 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $66,682,000 after acquiring an additional 195,756 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Boston Trust Walden Corp raised its position in shares of Core Laboratories by 1.3% in the 2nd quarter. Boston Trust Walden Corp now owns 729,760 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $14,807,000 after acquiring an additional 9,468 shares during the period. 97.81% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Core Laboratories

Core Laboratories Inc provides reservoir description and production enhancement services and products to the oil and gas industry in the United States, and internationally. It operates through Reservoir Description and Production Enhancement segments. The Reservoir Description segment includes the characterization of petroleum reservoir rock and reservoir fluid samples to enhance production and improve recovery of crude oil and gas from its clients' reservoirs.