Violich Capital Management Inc. Sells 18,033 Shares of Schlumberger Limited (NYSE:SLB)

Violich Capital Management Inc. trimmed its stake in shares of Schlumberger Limited (NYSE:SLB) by 24.9% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 54,250 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after selling 18,033 shares during the quarter. Violich Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Schlumberger were worth $2,080,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. ORG Partners LLC grew its position in Schlumberger by 393.5% during the 3rd quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 607 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 484 shares during the last quarter. Prospera Private Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in Schlumberger in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $29,000. YANKCOM Partnership purchased a new stake in Schlumberger in the 4th quarter worth approximately $31,000. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC purchased a new stake in Schlumberger in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $37,000. Finally, Golden State Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Schlumberger in the 4th quarter worth approximately $34,000. 81.99% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Bejar Carmen Rando sold 5,524 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.41, for a total value of $223,224.84. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 30,829 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,245,799.89. This trade represents a 15.20 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, VP Ugo Prechner sold 7,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $44.20, for a total value of $309,400.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 11,240 shares in the company, valued at approximately $496,808. This represents a 38.38 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 263,782 shares of company stock valued at $11,442,229. 0.26% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have weighed in on SLB. Citigroup increased their price objective on Schlumberger from $50.00 to $54.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. BMO Capital Markets dropped their price objective on Schlumberger from $53.00 to $48.00 in a report on Thursday, January 16th. Piper Sandler began coverage on Schlumberger in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $47.00 price target on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of Schlumberger from $48.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus cut their price objective on shares of Schlumberger from $60.00 to $59.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, December 23rd. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Schlumberger currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $55.81.

Schlumberger Price Performance

NYSE SLB opened at $41.19 on Tuesday. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $40.17 and its 200-day moving average price is $42.19. The stock has a market capitalization of $57.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.25, a PEG ratio of 9.49 and a beta of 1.51. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49, a current ratio of 1.45 and a quick ratio of 1.11. Schlumberger Limited has a 1-year low of $36.52 and a 1-year high of $55.69.

Schlumberger (NYSE:SLB) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 17th. The oil and gas company reported $0.92 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.90 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $9.28 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.24 billion. Schlumberger had a return on equity of 21.90% and a net margin of 12.29%. The company’s revenue was up 3.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.86 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that Schlumberger Limited will post 3.38 earnings per share for the current year.

Schlumberger Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 3rd. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 5th will be issued a $0.285 dividend. This is a boost from Schlumberger’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.28. This represents a $1.14 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.77%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, February 5th. Schlumberger’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 36.66%.

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.