DNB Asset Management AS Sells 718,641 Shares of SLB Limited $SLB

Key Points

• DNB Asset Management AS cut its SLB stake by 69.6% in the fourth quarter, selling 718,641 shares and leaving it with 313,472 shares worth about $12.0 million.
• SLB reported quarterly EPS of $0.52, slightly ahead of estimates, while revenue came in at $8.72 billion and rose 2.7% year over year.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.295 per share, and analysts currently rate SLB a Moderate Buy with an average price target of $59.74.

DNB Asset Management AS reduced its position in shares of SLB Limited (NYSE:SLB - Free Report) by 69.6% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 313,472 shares of the oil and gas company's stock after selling 718,641 shares during the quarter. DNB Asset Management AS's holdings in SLB were worth $12,031,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Root Financial Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of SLB in the third quarter valued at $29,000. Strategic Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of SLB in the fourth quarter valued at $30,000. Strengthening Families & Communities LLC acquired a new position in shares of SLB in the third quarter valued at $31,000. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. acquired a new position in shares of SLB in the fourth quarter valued at $31,000. Finally, Steph & Co. increased its holdings in shares of SLB by 97.5% in the fourth quarter. Steph & Co. now owns 798 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 394 shares during the last quarter. 81.99% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

SLB Trading Down 0.1%

Shares of SLB stock opened at $55.33 on Monday. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $51.44 and a 200-day moving average of $45.77. The stock has a market cap of $82.72 billion, a PE ratio of 24.16, a PEG ratio of 3.90 and a beta of 0.72. SLB Limited has a 52-week low of $31.64 and a 52-week high of $57.20. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a current ratio of 1.34.

SLB (NYSE:SLB - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Saturday, April 25th. The oil and gas company reported $0.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.51 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $8.72 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $8.76 billion. SLB had a net margin of 9.26% and a return on equity of 15.54%. SLB's quarterly revenue was up 2.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.72 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that SLB Limited will post 2.61 EPS for the current year.

SLB Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 9th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, June 3rd will be given a $0.295 dividend. This represents a $1.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, June 3rd. SLB's payout ratio is presently 51.53%.

Insider Transactions at SLB

In other news, EVP Steve Matthew Gassen sold 53,379 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $56.18, for a total value of $2,998,832.22. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 47,421 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,664,111.78. The trade was a 52.96% 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. Also, Director La Chevardiere Patrick De sold 2,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $54.33, for a total transaction of $108,660.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 16,953 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $921,056.49. The trade was a 10.55% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders own 0.16% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

SLB has been the topic of several research reports. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price objective on shares of SLB from $56.00 to $61.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, April 27th. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of SLB from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $61.00 price objective on shares of SLB in a report on Monday, April 27th. Morgan Stanley set a $57.00 price objective on shares of SLB in a report on Monday, April 27th. Finally, Argus upgraded shares of SLB to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Monday, January 26th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have given a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $59.74.

SLB Profile

SLB NYSE: SLB, historically known as Schlumberger, is a leading global provider of technology, integrated project management and information solutions for the energy industry. Founded by Conrad and Marcel Schlumberger in 1926, the company develops and supplies products and services used across the exploration, drilling, completion and production phases of oil and gas development. Its offerings are intended to help operators characterize reservoirs, drill and complete wells, optimize production and manage field operations throughout the asset lifecycle.

SLB's product and service portfolio spans reservoir characterization and well testing, wireline and logging services, directional drilling and drilling tools, well construction and completion technologies, production systems, and subsea equipment.

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