Core Laboratories (NYSE:CLB) Trading 4.6% Higher - Here's What Happened

Key Points

• Core Laboratories (NYSE:CLB) shares rose by 4.6% to reach a last trading price of $12.27, although its trading volume was significantly lower than average.
• Analysts have varied opinions on the stock, with Stifel Nicolaus lowering its price target to $12 and Wall Street Zen upgrading it to a "hold" rating.
• The company recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.01, set to be paid on August 25th, which reflects an annualized yield of 0.33%.

Core Laboratories Inc. (NYSE:CLB - Get Free Report) traded up 4.6% during mid-day trading on Monday . The company traded as high as $12.19 and last traded at $12.27. 91,648 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 80% from the average session volume of 453,048 shares. The stock had previously closed at $11.73.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price target on shares of Core Laboratories from $13.00 to $12.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 16th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Core Laboratories from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday. Finally, Citigroup dropped their price target on shares of Core Laboratories from $16.00 to $13.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, May 13th.

Core Laboratories Stock Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 1.70, a current ratio of 2.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47. The company has a market cap of $561.15 million, a PE ratio of 19.31, a P/E/G ratio of 3.61 and a beta of 1.41. The business's fifty day moving average is $11.83 and its 200-day moving average is $13.84.

Core Laboratories (NYSE:CLB - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 23rd. The oil and gas company reported $0.19 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.18 by $0.01. Core Laboratories had a net margin of 5.73% and a return on equity of 14.15%. The business had revenue of $130.16 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $129.19 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.22 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was down .3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts predict that Core Laboratories Inc. will post 0.96 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Core Laboratories Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 25th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 4th will be issued a $0.01 dividend. This represents a $0.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.33%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 4th. Core Laboratories's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 6.45%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Core Laboratories

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Millennium Management LLC increased its position in Core Laboratories by 429.0% during the fourth quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 65,616 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $1,136,000 after acquiring an additional 53,213 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. bought a new position in Core Laboratories during the fourth quarter valued at $464,000. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. increased its position in Core Laboratories by 19.8% during the first quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. now owns 69,184 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $1,037,000 after acquiring an additional 11,438 shares during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp boosted its stake in shares of Core Laboratories by 15.6% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 577,752 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $10,001,000 after purchasing an additional 78,173 shares during the period. Finally, Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Core Laboratories during the fourth quarter valued at $1,910,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 97.81% of the company's stock.

About Core Laboratories

Core Laboratories Inc provides reservoir description and production enhancement services and products to the oil and gas industry in the United States, and internationally. It operates through Reservoir Description and Production Enhancement segments. The Reservoir Description segment includes the characterization of petroleum reservoir rock and reservoir fluid samples to enhance production and improve recovery of crude oil and gas from its clients' reservoirs.

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