Hendley & Co. Inc. Purchases Shares of 79,120 SLB Limited $SLB

Key Points

• Hendley & Co. Inc. initiated a new position in SLB, buying 79,120 shares worth about $4.07 million in the first quarter. The stake now represents roughly 1.5% of the firm’s portfolio.
• SLB reported better-than-expected quarterly earnings, posting EPS of $0.52 versus $0.51 expected, while revenue rose 2.7% year over year to $8.72 billion. Analysts now expect the company to earn 2.62 EPS for the full year.
• The company also announced a quarterly dividend of $0.295 per share, or $1.18 annualized, yielding about 2.5%. Meanwhile, analysts remain broadly positive, with a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $60.83.

Hendley & Co. Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of SLB Limited (NYSE:SLB - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 79,120 shares of the oil and gas company's stock, valued at approximately $4,066,000. SLB comprises about 1.5% of Hendley & Co. Inc.'s portfolio, making the stock its 26th largest position.

A number of other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of SLB. MV Capital Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of SLB in the fourth quarter worth $28,000. Steph & Co. raised its position in SLB by 97.5% during the 4th quarter. Steph & Co. now owns 798 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 394 shares during the last quarter. Strategic Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in SLB during the 4th quarter worth $30,000. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. acquired a new position in SLB during the 4th quarter worth about $31,000. Finally, Lloyd Advisory Services LLC. acquired a new position in SLB during the 4th quarter worth about $31,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.99% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other SLB news, EVP Steve Matthew Gassen sold 53,379 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $56.18, for a total value of $2,998,832.22. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly 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 filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director La Chevardiere Patrick De sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the director owned 16,953 shares in the company, valued at $921,056.49. The trade was a 10.55% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders own 0.16% of the company's stock.

SLB Stock Performance

Shares of SLB stock opened at $47.95 on Tuesday. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $54.60 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $49.19. SLB Limited has a 1-year low of $31.64 and a 1-year high of $58.82. The company has a current ratio of 1.34, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35. The company has a market cap of $71.69 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.94, a PEG ratio of 1.93 and a beta of 0.70.

SLB (NYSE:SLB - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data 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. SLB had a return on equity of 15.54% and a net margin of 9.26%.The company had revenue of $8.72 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.76 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.72 EPS. The firm's revenue was up 2.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts anticipate that SLB Limited will post 2.62 EPS for the current year.

SLB Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 9th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, June 3rd will be issued a $0.295 dividend. This represents a $1.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.5%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, June 3rd. SLB's payout ratio is presently 51.53%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on SLB shares. Weiss Ratings cut SLB from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on SLB from $54.00 to $61.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, April 27th. Morgan Stanley set a $57.00 target price on SLB in a report on Monday, April 27th. BMO Capital Markets increased their target price on shares of SLB from $55.00 to $63.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, April 27th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group restated a "buy" rating and set a $65.00 price target on shares of SLB in a report on Sunday, April 26th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have given a Buy rating, three have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, SLB presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $60.83.

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.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding SLB? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for SLB Limited (NYSE:SLB - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.