Machina Capital S.A.S. Acquires New Shares in SLB Limited $SLB

Machina Capital S.A.S. acquired a new position in SLB Limited (NYSE:SLB) in the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 94,352 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,243,000.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Brighton Jones LLC increased its holdings in SLB by 21.4% during the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 6,611 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $253,000 after buying an additional 1,166 shares during the period. Bison Wealth LLC bought a new stake in SLB during the 4th quarter valued at $238,000. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC increased its holdings in shares of SLB by 22.5% in the 2nd quarter. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC now owns 7,367 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $249,000 after acquiring an additional 1,355 shares during the period. Mraz Amerine & Associates Inc. raised its position in shares of SLB by 15.0% in the 2nd quarter. Mraz Amerine & Associates Inc. now owns 109,719 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $3,709,000 after acquiring an additional 14,308 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Tyche Wealth Partners LLC raised its position in shares of SLB by 19.0% in the 2nd quarter. Tyche Wealth Partners LLC now owns 9,306 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $315,000 after acquiring an additional 1,488 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.99% of the company’s stock.

SLB Trading Up 3.5%

NYSE:SLB opened at $49.74 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $74.38 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.99, a PEG ratio of 3.27 and a beta of 0.73. The company has a current ratio of 1.33, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36. SLB Limited has a 12 month low of $31.11 and a 12 month high of $51.67. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $42.00 and a 200-day simple moving average of $37.38.

SLB (NYSE:SLB) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 23rd. The oil and gas company reported $0.78 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.74 by $0.04. SLB had a return on equity of 17.45% and a net margin of 9.45%.The business had revenue of $9.75 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.54 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.92 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 5.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that SLB Limited will post 3.38 earnings per share for the current year.

SLB Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 2nd. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, February 11th will be paid a dividend of $0.295 per share. This represents a $1.18 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.4%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, February 11th. This is a positive change from SLB’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. SLB’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 48.10%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on SLB shares. Barclays raised their price objective on SLB from $47.00 to $49.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, January 26th. UBS Group reissued a “buy” rating on shares of SLB in a research report on Tuesday, January 27th. Rothschild & Co Redburn began coverage on shares of SLB in a report on Monday, November 3rd. They issued a “buy” rating and a $48.00 price target on the stock. Redburn Partners set a $48.00 price objective on shares of SLB in a research note on Monday, November 3rd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of SLB from $43.00 to $54.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, January 26th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have given a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, SLB currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $52.17.

Insider Transactions at SLB

In related news, CFO Stephane Biguet sold 61,017 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, January 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $49.70, for a total transaction of $3,032,544.90. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 155,548 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,730,735.60. This trade represents a 28.17% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Abdellah Merad sold 60,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, January 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $49.70, for a total transaction of $2,982,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 140,602 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,987,919.40. The trade was a 29.91% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 260,849 shares of company stock valued at $11,668,003. 0.22% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

About SLB

SLB (NYSE: SLB), historically known as Schlumberger, is a leading global provider of technology, integrated project management and information solutions for the energy industry. Founded by Conrad and Marcel Schlumberger in 1926, the company develops and supplies products and services used across the exploration, drilling, completion and production phases of oil and gas development. Its offerings are intended to help operators characterize reservoirs, drill and complete wells, optimize production and manage field operations throughout the asset lifecycle.

SLB’s product and service portfolio spans reservoir characterization and well testing, wireline and logging services, directional drilling and drilling tools, well construction and completion technologies, production systems, and subsea equipment.