Gotham Asset Management LLC Sells 64,708 Shares of Schlumberger Limited $SLB

Key Points

• Gotham Asset Management LLC reduced its stake in Schlumberger Limited by 9.8% during the first quarter, holding 594,772 shares valued at approximately $24.86 million.
• Schlumberger recently reported earnings per share of $0.74 for the quarter, slightly beating consensus estimates, but the company's revenue declined by 6.5% compared to the previous year.
• Schlumberger has announced a quarterly dividend of $0.285 per share, reflecting a dividend yield of 3.2% with a payout ratio of 39.04%.

Gotham Asset Management LLC reduced its position in Schlumberger Limited (NYSE:SLB - Free Report) by 9.8% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 594,772 shares of the oil and gas company's stock after selling 64,708 shares during the period. Gotham Asset Management LLC's holdings in Schlumberger were worth $24,861,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in SLB. First Command Advisory Services Inc. grew its stake in Schlumberger by 300.0% in the first quarter. First Command Advisory Services Inc. now owns 636 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 477 shares during the period. Atlas Capital Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in Schlumberger in the first quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Alpine Bank Wealth Management bought a new position in shares of Schlumberger during the first quarter worth approximately $34,000. Park Square Financial Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Schlumberger during the first quarter worth approximately $38,000. Finally, Mpwm Advisory Solutions LLC acquired a new stake in Schlumberger during the fourth quarter worth approximately $40,000. 81.99% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently weighed in on SLB. Barclays cut their price objective on Schlumberger from $47.00 to $46.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, July 21st. Susquehanna lowered their price objective on Schlumberger from $44.00 to $42.00 and set a "positive" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, July 21st. Melius started coverage on Schlumberger in a research note on Wednesday, August 20th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $82.00 target price for the company. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their target price on Schlumberger from $54.00 to $53.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, June 26th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company downgraded Schlumberger from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Sunday, July 20th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have assigned a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $52.86.

Schlumberger Trading Down 0.6%

NYSE SLB traded down $0.21 during trading on Friday, hitting $35.81. 13,436,375 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 12,279,266. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $34.75 and a two-hundred day moving average of $35.90. 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 12-month low of $31.11 and a 12-month high of $46.15. The firm has a market cap of $48.38 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.26, a PEG ratio of 9.94 and a beta of 1.05.

Schlumberger (NYSE:SLB - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, July 18th. The oil and gas company reported $0.74 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping 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 company had revenue of $8.55 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.51 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.85 earnings per share. Schlumberger's revenue was down 6.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Schlumberger Limited will post 3.38 EPS for the current year.

Schlumberger Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 9th. Investors of record on Wednesday, September 3rd will be issued a $0.285 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, September 3rd. This represents a $1.14 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.2%. Schlumberger's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 39.04%.

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.