Avantax Advisory Services Inc. Raises Position in Schlumberger Limited (NYSE:SLB)

Avantax Advisory Services Inc. lifted its position in shares of Schlumberger Limited (NYSE:SLB - Free Report) by 20.6% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 99,786 shares of the oil and gas company's stock after purchasing an additional 17,046 shares during the period. Avantax Advisory Services Inc.'s holdings in Schlumberger were worth $4,171,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in SLB. Vident Advisory LLC grew its position in shares of Schlumberger by 1.0% in the 4th quarter. Vident Advisory LLC now owns 27,838 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $1,067,000 after buying an additional 273 shares during the period. Glen Eagle Advisors LLC lifted its position in Schlumberger by 3.7% during the 4th quarter. Glen Eagle Advisors LLC now owns 7,843 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $301,000 after acquiring an additional 282 shares during the period. Heritage Wealth Management Inc. Texas boosted its stake in Schlumberger by 2.2% during the first quarter. Heritage Wealth Management Inc. Texas now owns 14,736 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $616,000 after acquiring an additional 318 shares in the last quarter. Wahed Invest LLC grew its holdings in Schlumberger by 0.9% in the fourth quarter. Wahed Invest LLC now owns 35,022 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $1,343,000 after purchasing an additional 319 shares during the period. Finally, Financial Management Professionals Inc. increased its stake in shares of Schlumberger by 2.0% during the first quarter. Financial Management Professionals Inc. now owns 16,851 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $704,000 after purchasing an additional 336 shares in the last quarter. 81.99% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Schlumberger Price Performance

Shares of SLB stock traded down $0.84 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $32.96. The stock had a trading volume of 8,257,116 shares, compared to its average volume of 16,675,430. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51, a current ratio of 1.31 and a quick ratio of 0.98. Schlumberger Limited has a one year low of $31.11 and a one year high of $46.16. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $34.79 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $37.28. The stock has a market capitalization of $44.54 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.30, a PEG ratio of 9.48 and a beta of 1.01.

Schlumberger (NYSE:SLB - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, July 18th. The oil and gas company reported $0.74 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.73 by $0.01. Schlumberger had a net margin of 11.53% and a return on equity of 20.99%. The firm had revenue of $8.55 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.51 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.85 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down 6.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts forecast that Schlumberger Limited will post 3.38 EPS for the current year.

Schlumberger Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 9th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, September 3rd will be given a dividend of $0.285 per share. This represents a $1.14 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.5%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, September 3rd. Schlumberger's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 39.04%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price target on Schlumberger from $54.00 to $52.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on shares of Schlumberger from $46.00 to $44.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, June 30th. Atb Cap Markets raised shares of Schlumberger from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 1st. UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of Schlumberger from $44.00 to $45.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 2nd. Finally, Piper Sandler lowered their price objective on shares of Schlumberger from $44.00 to $42.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, July 18th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $49.28.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director La Chevardiere Patrick De sold 5,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $33.58, for a total transaction of $167,900.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 23,525 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $789,969.50. This trade represents a 17.53% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 0.26% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Schlumberger Profile

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.