Lazard Asset Management LLC Has $139.06 Million Holdings in Schlumberger Limited (NYSE:SLB)

Lazard Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in Schlumberger Limited (NYSE:SLB - Free Report) by 3,112.1% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 3,627,051 shares of the oil and gas company's stock after purchasing an additional 3,514,134 shares during the quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC owned 0.26% of Schlumberger worth $139,059,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of SLB. YANKCOM Partnership bought a new stake in Schlumberger in the fourth quarter worth $31,000. Stonebridge Financial Group LLC bought a new stake in Schlumberger in the 4th quarter valued at $32,000. Golden State Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Schlumberger during the fourth quarter worth about $34,000. Hager Investment Management Services LLC bought a new stake in shares of Schlumberger during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $38,000. Finally, Bogart Wealth LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Schlumberger by 468.9% during the 4th quarter. Bogart Wealth LLC now owns 1,024 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $39,000 after acquiring an additional 844 shares during the period. 81.99% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Schlumberger

In other news, insider Aparna Raman sold 25,133 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, March 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $42.28, for a total value of $1,062,623.24. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 31,031 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,311,990.68. This represents a 44.75% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Gavin Rennick sold 26,990 shares of Schlumberger stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $40.92, for a total value of $1,104,430.80. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 53,584 shares in the company, valued at $2,192,657.28. The trade was a 33.50% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.26% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on SLB shares. Evercore ISI reissued an "in-line" rating and set a $44.00 price target (down from $62.00) on shares of Schlumberger in a report on Wednesday, January 15th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of Schlumberger from $48.00 to $50.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. BMO Capital Markets lowered their price target on Schlumberger from $53.00 to $48.00 in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their target price on Schlumberger from $58.00 to $54.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 28th. Finally, Barclays dropped their price target on Schlumberger from $53.00 to $48.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 25th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Schlumberger currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $53.32.

Schlumberger Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:SLB traded down $0.31 on Thursday, hitting $35.70. The company had a trading volume of 11,997,135 shares, compared to its average volume of 13,464,680. The stock has a market cap of $48.56 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.48, a P/E/G ratio of 10.10 and a beta of 1.06. The company has a current ratio of 1.45, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49. Schlumberger Limited has a 1-year low of $31.11 and a 1-year high of $50.94. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $36.93 and a 200 day moving average price of $39.64.

Schlumberger (NYSE:SLB - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, April 25th. The oil and gas company reported $0.72 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.73 by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $8.49 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.64 billion. Schlumberger had a return on equity of 21.90% and a net margin of 12.29%. The firm's quarterly revenue was down 2.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.75 EPS. Analysts expect that Schlumberger Limited will post 3.38 EPS for the current year.

Schlumberger Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 10th. Investors of record on Wednesday, June 4th will be paid a $0.285 dividend. This represents a $1.14 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.19%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, June 4th. Schlumberger's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 38.64%.

Schlumberger Company 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.