Schlumberger (NYSE:SLB) Trading Up 7.4% After Earnings Beat

Schlumberger Limited (NYSE:SLB) shares shot up 7.4% on Friday following a better than expected earnings announcement. The stock traded as high as $43.82 and last traded at $44.13. 6,062,981 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 47% from the average session volume of 11,501,938 shares. The stock had previously closed at $41.09.

The oil and gas company reported $0.92 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.90 by $0.02. Schlumberger had a return on equity of 21.84% and a net margin of 12.44%. The firm had revenue of $9.28 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9,241,140 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.86 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 3.3% on a year-over-year basis.

Schlumberger Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 3rd. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 5th will be issued a dividend of $0.285 per share. This represents a $1.14 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.62%. This is a positive change from Schlumberger’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.28. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, February 5th. Schlumberger’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 35.37%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on SLB shares. Bank of America cut their price target on Schlumberger from $58.00 to $54.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, October 14th. Citigroup decreased their price objective on shares of Schlumberger from $53.00 to $50.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on Schlumberger from $55.00 to $48.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 2nd. BMO Capital Markets cut their price target on Schlumberger from $53.00 to $48.00 in a research report on Thursday. Finally, Piper Sandler initiated coverage on shares of Schlumberger in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $47.00 target price for the company. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $56.03.

Insider Activity

In other Schlumberger news, EVP Abdellah Merad sold 60,000 shares of the business’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 directly owns 211,937 shares in the company, valued at $8,880,160.30. The trade was a 22.06 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.26% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Schlumberger

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. State Street Corp grew its stake in shares of Schlumberger by 0.6% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 90,209,014 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $3,808,476,000 after buying an additional 528,279 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Schlumberger by 0.8% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 28,608,226 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $1,195,290,000 after acquiring an additional 239,966 shares during the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc boosted its holdings in shares of Schlumberger by 14.0% in the 2nd quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 12,686,384 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $598,544,000 after buying an additional 1,560,684 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC grew its holdings in shares of Schlumberger by 20.6% during the third quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 11,213,944 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $470,425,000 after purchasing an additional 1,916,851 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its position in Schlumberger by 0.4% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 7,990,797 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $335,214,000 after buying an additional 31,718 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.99% of the company’s stock.

Schlumberger Trading Up 6.1 %

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 $61.54 billion, a PE ratio of 14.01, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.35 and a beta of 1.52. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $40.86 and its 200-day moving average price is $42.90.

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.