SLB Limited $SLB Shares Sold by AEGON ASSET MANAGEMENT UK Plc

Key Points

• AEGON ASSET MANAGEMENT UK Plc reduced its SLB stake by 38.2% in the first quarter, selling 477,403 shares and ending with 771,849 shares valued at about $39.7 million.
• Several insiders also sold shares, including Director Patrick De La Chevardiere and EVP Steve Matthew Gassen, with Gassen’s sale being the larger transaction at nearly $3.0 million.
• Analysts remain broadly positive on SLB, with a consensus Moderate Buy rating and average price target of $60.83, while the stock recently traded around $48.12 and the company reported quarterly EPS of $0.52, slightly ahead of estimates.

AEGON ASSET MANAGEMENT UK Plc cut its holdings in shares of SLB Limited (NYSE:SLB - Free Report) by 38.2% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 771,849 shares of the oil and gas company's stock after selling 477,403 shares during the quarter. AEGON ASSET MANAGEMENT UK Plc owned approximately 0.05% of SLB worth $39,673,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Diversified Trust Co bought a new stake in shares of SLB in the first quarter worth $203,000. Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV bought a new position in SLB during the 1st quarter valued at $309,000. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. boosted its stake in SLB by 180.1% during the 4th quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. now owns 1,393,578 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $53,486,000 after acquiring an additional 895,987 shares during the last quarter. World Investment Advisors grew its holdings in SLB by 97.8% during the 4th quarter. World Investment Advisors now owns 14,991 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $575,000 after acquiring an additional 7,412 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Larry Mathis Financial Planning LLC acquired a new position in SLB during the 4th quarter worth $254,000. 81.99% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

SLB has been the subject of several research analyst reports. UBS Group boosted their target price on shares of SLB from $61.00 to $69.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 29th. BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on shares of SLB from $55.00 to $63.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, April 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target 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 price objective on SLB in a report on Monday, April 27th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada restated an "outperform" rating and set a $61.00 price objective on shares of SLB in a research note on Tuesday, June 16th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have assigned a Buy rating, three have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, SLB presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $60.83.

SLB Stock Up 0.1%

SLB stock opened at $48.12 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a current ratio of 1.34 and a quick ratio of 0.98. SLB Limited has a 1-year low of $31.64 and a 1-year high of $58.82. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $54.69 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $49.02. The firm has a market cap of $71.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.01, a PEG ratio of 1.95 and a beta of 0.70.

SLB (NYSE:SLB - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Saturday, April 25th. The oil and gas company reported $0.52 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.51 by $0.01. SLB had a net margin of 9.26% and a return on equity of 15.54%. The company had revenue of $8.72 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $8.76 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.72 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was up 2.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts predict that SLB Limited will post 2.62 EPS for the current year.

SLB Dividend Announcement

The firm 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 is Wednesday, June 3rd. This represents a $1.18 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.5%. SLB's dividend payout ratio is 51.53%.

SLB Profile

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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