Brokerages Set SLB Limited (NYSE:SLB) Price Target at $53.16

SLB Limited (NYSE:SLB) has been assigned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the twenty-three brokerages that are currently covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating, sixteen have given a buy rating and three have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. The average 12-month price target among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $53.1632.

A number of research firms have weighed in on SLB. TD Cowen upped their price objective on shares of SLB from $56.00 to $57.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 11th. Freedom Capital lowered shares of SLB from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 27th. Bank of America upped their price target on shares of SLB from $50.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, January 26th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of SLB from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, March 14th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $50.00 price objective on shares of SLB in a report on Wednesday, January 21st.

Insider Transactions at SLB

In other SLB news, Director La Chevardiere Patrick De sold 4,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, January 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.29, for a total value of $201,160.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 19,525 shares in the company, valued at approximately $981,912.25. This trade represents a 17.00% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CAO Howard Guild sold 13,268 shares of SLB stock in a transaction on Monday, January 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $49.70, for a total transaction of $659,419.60. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 22,407 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,113,627.90. This trade represents a 37.19% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last three months, insiders sold 156,902 shares of company stock valued at $7,796,666. Insiders own 0.16% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On SLB

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of SLB. Twin Peaks Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in SLB in the 2nd quarter valued at about $25,000. MV Capital Management Inc. purchased a new position in SLB in the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. Root Financial Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of SLB during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $29,000. Strategic Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of SLB during the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. Finally, Corsicana & Co. purchased a new stake in shares of SLB in the third quarter valued at approximately $31,000. 81.99% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

SLB Stock Up 2.6%

SLB stock opened at $50.52 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 1.33 and a quick ratio of 0.98. The stock has a market capitalization of $75.90 billion, a PE ratio of 21.32, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.50 and a beta of 0.68. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $48.92 and a 200-day simple moving average of $41.02. SLB has a 12 month low of $31.11 and a 12 month high of $52.45.

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

SLB Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 2nd. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, February 11th will be given a $0.295 dividend. This represents a $1.18 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.3%. This is a boost from SLB’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, February 11th. SLB’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 49.79%.

SLB Company Profile

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.