Norges Bank Makes New Investment in Schlumberger Limited (NYSE:SLB)

Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Schlumberger Limited (NYSE:SLB) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 19,180,960 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock, valued at approximately $735,398,000. Norges Bank owned about 1.37% of Schlumberger at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky lifted its holdings in Schlumberger by 25.9% in the third quarter. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky now owns 761,875 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $31,961,000 after acquiring an additional 156,698 shares during the period. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB lifted its stake in shares of Schlumberger by 27.0% in the 3rd quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 76,838 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $3,223,000 after purchasing an additional 16,350 shares during the period. Bryn Mawr Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Schlumberger by 502.6% during the fourth quarter. Bryn Mawr Capital Management LLC now owns 198,024 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $7,592,000 after buying an additional 165,162 shares in the last quarter. Narwhal Capital Management grew its position in Schlumberger by 225.5% during the fourth quarter. Narwhal Capital Management now owns 74,645 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $2,862,000 after buying an additional 51,715 shares during the period. Finally, Czech National Bank increased its holdings in Schlumberger by 5.8% in the fourth quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 306,183 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $11,739,000 after buying an additional 16,914 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.99% of the company’s stock.

Schlumberger Price Performance

SLB stock opened at $42.14 on Friday. Schlumberger Limited has a 52-week low of $36.52 and a 52-week high of $55.69. The company has a quick ratio of 1.11, a current ratio of 1.45 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49. The stock has a market cap of $57.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.55, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 10.10 and a beta of 1.47. The business has a fifty day moving average of $41.32 and a two-hundred day moving average of $41.43.

Schlumberger (NYSE:SLB) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 17th. The oil and gas company reported $0.92 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.90 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $9.28 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.24 billion. Schlumberger had a net margin of 12.29% and a return on equity of 21.90%. Schlumberger’s revenue was up 3.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.86 EPS. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Schlumberger Limited will post 3.38 earnings per share for the current year.

Schlumberger Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 3rd. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 5th will be given a dividend of $0.285 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, February 5th. This represents a $1.14 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.71%. This is a boost from Schlumberger’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.28. Schlumberger’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 36.66%.

Insider Activity at Schlumberger

In other news, insider Gavin Rennick sold 26,990 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.92, for a total transaction of $1,104,430.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly 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 filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Vijay Kasibhatla sold 25,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.94, for a total value of $1,098,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 49,595 shares in the company, valued at $2,179,204.30. This represents a 33.51 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 290,772 shares of company stock worth $12,546,660. Insiders own 0.26% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on SLB shares. Evercore ISI reiterated an “in-line” rating and set a $44.00 target price (down previously from $62.00) on shares of Schlumberger in a research report on Wednesday, January 15th. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $57.00 target price on shares of Schlumberger in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. BMO Capital Markets reduced their price target on shares of Schlumberger from $53.00 to $48.00 in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. Piper Sandler assumed coverage on Schlumberger in a report on Thursday, December 19th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $47.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, TD Cowen raised their target price on Schlumberger from $53.00 to $55.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Schlumberger has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $55.69.

Schlumberger Company 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.