Olstein Capital Management L.P. Grows Holdings in Schlumberger Limited (NYSE:SLB)

Olstein Capital Management L.P. increased its stake in Schlumberger Limited (NYSE:SLB) by 3.3% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 252,000 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after buying an additional 8,000 shares during the quarter. Schlumberger comprises approximately 1.7% of Olstein Capital Management L.P.’s holdings, making the stock its 8th largest holding. Olstein Capital Management L.P.’s holdings in Schlumberger were worth $9,662,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of SLB. ORG Partners LLC boosted its holdings in Schlumberger by 393.5% during the 3rd quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 607 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 484 shares during the period. Prospera Private Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in Schlumberger in the third quarter worth $29,000. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Schlumberger during the third quarter valued at $37,000. DiNuzzo Private Wealth Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Schlumberger by 1,068.3% in the third quarter. DiNuzzo Private Wealth Inc. now owns 958 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 876 shares during the last quarter. Finally, J. Stern & Co. LLP purchased a new position in Schlumberger in the 3rd quarter worth about $47,000. Institutional investors own 81.99% of the company’s stock.

Schlumberger Stock Performance

Shares of SLB opened at $42.30 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a current ratio of 1.45. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $40.74 and a two-hundred day moving average of $42.75. The stock has a market cap of $59.73 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.60, a P/E/G ratio of 9.98 and a beta of 1.52. Schlumberger Limited has a one year low of $36.52 and a one year high of $55.69.

Schlumberger (NYSE:SLB) last issued its earnings results on Friday, January 17th. The oil and gas company reported $0.92 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.90 by $0.02. Schlumberger had a return on equity of 21.90% and a net margin of 12.29%. The firm had revenue of $9.28 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9,241,140 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.86 earnings per share. Schlumberger’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts predict that Schlumberger Limited will post 3.34 EPS for the current year.

Schlumberger Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 3rd. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 5th will be given a dividend of $0.285 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, February 5th. This is an increase from Schlumberger’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.28. This represents a $1.14 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.70%. Schlumberger’s payout ratio is currently 35.37%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Schlumberger

In other Schlumberger news, Director Vijay Kasibhatla sold 25,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $43.94, for a total value of $1,098,500.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 49,595 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,179,204.30. This represents a 33.51 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Dianne B. Ralston sold 43,161 shares of Schlumberger stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.96, for a total transaction of $1,897,357.56. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 235,024 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,331,655.04. This trade represents a 15.52 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 198,258 shares of company stock valued at $8,732,604. 0.26% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. Bank of America reduced their target price on shares of Schlumberger from $58.00 to $54.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, October 14th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on shares of Schlumberger from $49.00 to $46.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. Atb Cap Markets lowered shares of Schlumberger from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Susquehanna lowered their target price on Schlumberger from $60.00 to $56.00 and set a “positive” rating for the company in a report on Monday, October 21st. Finally, Evercore ISI reiterated an “in-line” rating and issued a $44.00 price target (down from $62.00) on shares of Schlumberger in a report on Wednesday, January 15th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Schlumberger currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $55.81.

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.