Wells Fargo & Company Issues Pessimistic Forecast for Schlumberger (NYSE:SLB) Stock Price

Schlumberger (NYSE:SLB) had its price target trimmed by Wells Fargo & Company from $49.00 to $46.00 in a report published on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an equal weight rating on the oil and gas company’s stock.

SLB has been the subject of a number of other research reports. Dbs Bank initiated coverage on Schlumberger in a report on Wednesday, September 18th. They set a “buy” rating and a $64.50 target price for the company. Bank of America dropped their target price on shares of Schlumberger from $58.00 to $54.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, October 14th. Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded shares of Schlumberger to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 12th. Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $69.00 price objective on shares of Schlumberger in a report on Thursday, October 3rd. Finally, UBS Group reduced their target price on Schlumberger from $63.00 to $57.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, September 18th. Three 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 stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $60.74.

Schlumberger Price Performance

Shares of Schlumberger stock opened at $38.93 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $54.98 billion, a PE ratio of 12.52, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 1.51. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $42.51 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $43.89. The company has a quick ratio of 1.12, a current ratio of 1.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52. Schlumberger has a 12-month low of $38.66 and a 12-month high of $55.69.

Schlumberger (NYSE:SLB) last posted its earnings results on Friday, October 18th. The oil and gas company reported $0.89 earnings per share (EPS) 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%. Schlumberger’s quarterly revenue was up 10.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.78 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts expect that Schlumberger will post 3.39 EPS for the current year.

Schlumberger Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 9th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, December 4th will be paid a $0.275 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, December 4th. This represents a $1.10 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.83%. Schlumberger’s dividend payout ratio is presently 35.37%.

Insider Activity at Schlumberger

In other Schlumberger news, EVP Abdellah Merad sold 60,000 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 211,937 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,880,160.30. This trade represents a 22.06 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 0.26% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Schlumberger

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of SLB. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky raised its holdings 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 valued at $31,961,000 after purchasing an additional 156,698 shares during the last quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB raised its stake 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 valued at $3,223,000 after buying an additional 16,350 shares during the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Schlumberger by 8.7% during the 3rd quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 817,771 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $34,305,000 after buying an additional 65,318 shares during the period. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Schlumberger by 269.1% in the 3rd quarter. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC now owns 19,718 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $827,000 after buying an additional 14,376 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Public Sector Pension Investment Board grew its holdings in shares of Schlumberger by 0.6% in the second quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 1,901,713 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $89,723,000 after acquiring an additional 11,813 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.99% of the company’s stock.

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.