Pacer Advisors Inc. Sells 4,516,493 Shares of Schlumberger Limited (NYSE:SLB)

Key Points

• Pacer Advisors Inc. reduced its holdings in Schlumberger by 34.6% during the 1st quarter, selling 4,516,493 shares and retaining approximately 8.5 million shares valued at $356.4 million.
• Various analysts have adjusted their target prices for Schlumberger shares, with Barclays lowering its target from $47 to $46, while Stifel Nicolaus reduced theirs from $54 to $52; the consensus rating remains a "Moderate Buy."
• Schlumberger announced a quarterly dividend of $0.285 per share, to be paid on October 9, reflecting an annual yield of 3.23% with a payout ratio of 39.04%.

Pacer Advisors Inc. lowered its holdings in shares of Schlumberger Limited (NYSE:SLB - Free Report) by 34.6% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 8,526,866 shares of the oil and gas company's stock after selling 4,516,493 shares during the period. Pacer Advisors Inc. owned about 0.63% of Schlumberger worth $356,423,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the business. First Command Advisory Services Inc. increased its stake in shares of 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 buying an additional 477 shares during the period. Alpine Bank Wealth Management bought a new stake in Schlumberger in the first quarter valued at approximately $34,000. True Wealth Design LLC raised its holdings in Schlumberger by 584.7% during the 4th quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 986 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $38,000 after purchasing an additional 842 shares during the last quarter. Park Square Financial Group LLC bought a new position in Schlumberger during the 1st quarter worth approximately $38,000. Finally, Mpwm Advisory Solutions LLC bought a new stake in shares of Schlumberger in the 4th quarter valued at $40,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.99% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on SLB. Barclays lowered their target price on shares of Schlumberger from $47.00 to $46.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Monday. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price objective on Schlumberger from $54.00 to $52.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, July 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on Schlumberger from $46.00 to $44.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, June 30th. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their target price on Schlumberger from $54.00 to $53.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, June 26th. Finally, Susquehanna cut their price target on Schlumberger from $44.00 to $42.00 and set a "positive" rating on the stock in a report on Monday. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $49.28.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director La Chevardiere Patrick De sold 5,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $33.58, for a total value of $167,900.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 23,525 shares in the company, valued at $789,969.50. The trade was a 17.53% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.26% of the company's stock.

Schlumberger Stock Up 0.4%

SLB stock opened at $35.26 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $47.96 billion, a PE ratio of 12.08, a P/E/G ratio of 9.67 and a beta of 1.01. The company has a quick ratio of 0.98, a current ratio of 1.31 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51. Schlumberger Limited has a twelve month low of $31.11 and a twelve month high of $49.31. The stock's 50 day moving average is $34.75 and its 200-day moving average is $37.42.

Schlumberger (NYSE:SLB - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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. The firm had revenue of $8.55 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.51 billion. Schlumberger had a net margin of 11.53% and a return on equity of 20.99%. The business's revenue for the quarter was down 6.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.85 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that Schlumberger Limited will post 3.38 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Schlumberger Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 9th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, September 3rd will be given a $0.285 dividend. This represents a $1.14 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.23%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, September 3rd. Schlumberger's payout ratio is 39.04%.

Schlumberger Profile

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.

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