Schlumberger (NYSE:SLB) Lowered to Equal Weight at Wells Fargo & Company

Schlumberger (NYSE:SLB) was downgraded by stock analysts at Wells Fargo & Company from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating in a research note issued on Monday, FinViz reports. They currently have a $53.00 price target on the oil and gas company’s stock, down from their prior price target of $68.00. Wells Fargo & Company‘s target price suggests a potential upside of 7.72% from the company’s previous close.

A number of other equities analysts have also weighed in on SLB. Benchmark reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $68.00 price objective on shares of Schlumberger in a research note on Monday, April 22nd. Barclays decreased their target price on Schlumberger from $74.00 to $70.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 4th. Susquehanna reiterated a “positive” rating and issued a $77.00 target price on shares of Schlumberger in a research report on Monday, April 22nd. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price objective on Schlumberger from $66.00 to $69.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 3rd. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group restated a “buy” rating on shares of Schlumberger in a research report on Monday, April 1st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seventeen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Schlumberger currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $68.72.

Schlumberger Stock Performance

NYSE:SLB opened at $49.20 on Monday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $51.74 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $52.08. Schlumberger has a 52-week low of $42.73 and a 52-week high of $62.12. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a current ratio of 1.37. The firm has a market capitalization of $70.32 billion, a PE ratio of 16.35, a P/E/G ratio of 0.95 and a beta of 1.60.

Schlumberger (NYSE:SLB) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, April 19th. The oil and gas company reported $0.75 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.75. The business had revenue of $8.71 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.70 billion. Schlumberger had a return on equity of 21.88% and a net margin of 12.72%. Schlumberger’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.63 earnings per share. Analysts forecast that Schlumberger will post 3.51 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Schlumberger

In other news, CFO Stephane Biguet sold 6,250 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $48.64, for a total value of $304,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 242,932 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,816,212.48. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In related news, insider Gavin Rennick sold 20,045 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $48.77, for a total transaction of $977,594.65. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 77,563 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,782,747.51. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CFO Stephane Biguet sold 6,250 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $48.64, for a total value of $304,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 242,932 shares in the company, valued at $11,816,212.48. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 76,295 shares of company stock valued at $3,707,595. Corporate insiders own 0.26% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Highland Capital Management LLC increased its position in Schlumberger by 2,494.0% during the 4th quarter. Highland Capital Management LLC now owns 101,426 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $5,278,000 after buying an additional 97,516 shares in the last quarter. Guinness Asset Management LTD increased its holdings in shares of Schlumberger by 0.3% in the third quarter. Guinness Asset Management LTD now owns 331,309 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $19,468,000 after purchasing an additional 965 shares during the period. Nordea Investment Management AB increased its holdings in shares of Schlumberger by 36.4% in the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 1,424,625 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $74,080,000 after purchasing an additional 380,185 shares during the period. Allworth Financial LP increased its holdings in shares of Schlumberger by 3.8% in the third quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 5,557 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $324,000 after purchasing an additional 206 shares during the period. Finally, Asset Management One Co. Ltd. increased its holdings in shares of Schlumberger by 6.3% in the fourth quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 607,312 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $31,726,000 after purchasing an additional 35,763 shares during the period. 81.99% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.