Maryland State Retirement & Pension System Sells 9,390 Shares of Schlumberger Limited (NYSE:SLB)

Key Points

• The Maryland State Retirement & Pension System sold 9,390 shares of Schlumberger Limited, reducing its holdings by 12.5% and leaving it with 66,002 shares worth approximately $2.76 million.
• Analysts have mixed opinions on Schlumberger, with target prices ranging from $42.00 to $49.28, and ratings varying from "neutral" to "strong-buy."
• Schlumberger recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.285, reflecting an annual yield of 3.5% and a payout ratio of 39.04%.

Maryland State Retirement & Pension System cut its stake in Schlumberger Limited (NYSE:SLB - Free Report) by 12.5% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 66,002 shares of the oil and gas company's stock after selling 9,390 shares during the period. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System's holdings in Schlumberger were worth $2,759,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Vident Advisory LLC grew its position in Schlumberger by 1.0% in the fourth quarter. Vident Advisory LLC now owns 27,838 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $1,067,000 after acquiring an additional 273 shares in the last quarter. Glen Eagle Advisors LLC boosted its position in Schlumberger by 3.7% during the fourth quarter. Glen Eagle Advisors LLC now owns 7,843 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $301,000 after buying an additional 282 shares during the period. Heritage Wealth Management Inc. Texas boosted its position 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 valued at $616,000 after buying an additional 318 shares during the period. Wahed Invest LLC boosted its position in Schlumberger by 0.9% during the fourth quarter. Wahed Invest LLC now owns 35,022 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $1,343,000 after buying an additional 319 shares during the period. Finally, Financial Management Professionals Inc. boosted its position in 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 buying an additional 336 shares during the period. 81.99% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Schlumberger Stock Performance

Shares of SLB stock traded up $0.11 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $32.90. 10,215,438 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 19,085,280. Schlumberger Limited has a 12 month low of $31.11 and a 12 month high of $46.16. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $34.72 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $36.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a current ratio of 1.31. The firm has a market capitalization of $44.46 billion, a PE ratio of 11.27, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 9.12 and a beta of 1.03.

Schlumberger (NYSE:SLB - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, July 18th. The oil and gas company reported $0.74 earnings per share (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 in the previous year, the firm posted $0.85 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 6.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts forecast that Schlumberger Limited will post 3.38 EPS for the current year.

Schlumberger Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed 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. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, September 3rd. This represents a $1.14 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.5%. Schlumberger's payout ratio is presently 39.04%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director La Chevardiere Patrick De sold 5,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction 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 completion of the sale, the director owned 23,525 shares of the company's stock, valued at $789,969.50. The trade was a 17.53% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 0.26% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have issued reports on the stock. Atb Cap Markets upgraded shares of Schlumberger from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 1st. Susquehanna dropped their target price on shares of Schlumberger from $44.00 to $42.00 and set a "positive" rating for the company in a report on Monday, July 21st. UBS Group increased their target price on shares of Schlumberger from $44.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company lowered shares of Schlumberger from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Sunday, July 20th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus dropped their target price on shares of Schlumberger from $54.00 to $52.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 16th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $49.28.

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.