Franklin Resources Inc. Has $804.06 Million Stake in SLB Limited $SLB

Key Points

• Franklin Resources increased its SLB stake by 23% in the fourth quarter, ending with 20.95 million shares worth about $804 million. Institutional ownership remains very high, with hedge funds and other investors holding 81.99% of the stock.
• SLB shares were trading around $54.79, near their 52-week high of $58.82, with a market value of about $81.9 billion. The stock also carries a P/E of 23.92 and a dividend yield of 2.2%.
• SLB recently beat profit expectations with $0.52 EPS versus $0.51 expected, while revenue came in slightly below estimates at $8.72 billion. Analysts remain broadly positive, with an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $60.67.

Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of SLB Limited (NYSE:SLB - Free Report) by 23.0% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 20,949,940 shares of the oil and gas company's stock after purchasing an additional 3,913,048 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. owned 1.40% of SLB worth $804,059,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of SLB. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in SLB by 23.3% during the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 185,374,879 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $6,371,335,000 after purchasing an additional 35,057,313 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in SLB during the 4th quarter valued at $809,557,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its holdings in SLB by 64.4% during the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 15,696,831 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $602,444,000 after purchasing an additional 6,149,511 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp increased its holdings in SLB by 7.0% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 83,617,999 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $2,898,037,000 after purchasing an additional 5,466,786 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Capital International Investors increased its holdings in SLB by 86.9% during the 4th quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 11,627,072 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $446,247,000 after purchasing an additional 5,404,948 shares in the last quarter. 81.99% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

SLB Stock Down 0.2%

NYSE SLB opened at $54.79 on Monday. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $54.22 and a 200-day moving average of $47.89. The stock has a market capitalization of $81.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.92, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.22 and a beta of 0.70. SLB Limited has a 52 week low of $31.64 and a 52 week high of $58.82. 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 quarterly earnings data on Saturday, April 25th. The oil and gas company reported $0.52 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.51 by $0.01. SLB had a return on equity of 15.54% and a net margin of 9.26%.The business had revenue of $8.72 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $8.76 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.72 earnings per share. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 2.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts forecast that SLB Limited will post 2.62 EPS for the current year.

SLB Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 9th. Investors of record on Wednesday, June 3rd will be paid a dividend of $0.295 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, June 3rd. This represents a $1.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.2%. SLB's payout ratio is 51.53%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Steve Matthew Gassen sold 53,379 shares of SLB stock in a transaction on Friday, May 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $56.18, for a total transaction of $2,998,832.22. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 47,421 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,664,111.78. The trade was a 52.96% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Director La Chevardiere Patrick De sold 2,000 shares of SLB stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $54.33, for a total value of $108,660.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 16,953 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $921,056.49. This trade represents a 10.55% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 0.16% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on SLB shares. Piper Sandler lifted their target price on SLB from $53.00 to $59.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 15th. UBS Group lifted their target price on SLB from $61.00 to $69.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 29th. Susquehanna lifted their target price on SLB from $60.00 to $65.00 and gave the company a "positive" rating in a research note on Monday, April 27th. Citigroup lifted their target price on SLB from $59.00 to $68.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Finally, Morgan Stanley set a $57.00 target price on SLB in a research note on Monday, April 27th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have assigned a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $60.67.

About SLB

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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