Schlumberger Limited (NYSE:SLB) Raises Dividend to $0.28 Per Share

Schlumberger Limited (NYSE:SLB - Get Free Report) announced a quarterly dividend on Friday, April 19th, RTT News reports. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, June 5th will be given a dividend of 0.275 per share by the oil and gas company on Thursday, July 11th. This represents a $1.10 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.21%. This is an increase from Schlumberger's previous quarterly dividend of $0.25.

Schlumberger has increased its dividend payment by an average of 4.6% per year over the last three years and has increased its dividend annually for the last 3 consecutive years. Schlumberger has a payout ratio of 24.1% meaning its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Analysts expect Schlumberger to earn $4.25 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $1.00 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 23.5%.

Schlumberger Price Performance

SLB stock traded down $1.10 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $49.84. The stock had a trading volume of 16,839,639 shares, compared to its average volume of 11,283,835. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $51.62 and a 200 day simple moving average of $52.43. The firm has a market capitalization of $71.14 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.07, a P/E/G ratio of 0.97 and a beta of 1.60. The company has a current ratio of 1.32, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51. Schlumberger has a 52 week low of $42.73 and a 52 week high of $62.12.

Schlumberger (NYSE:SLB - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, April 19th. The oil and gas company reported $0.75 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts' consensus estimates of $0.75. Schlumberger had a net margin of 12.68% and a return on equity of 21.97%. The business had revenue of $8.71 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $8.70 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.63 earnings per share. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 12.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts forecast that Schlumberger will post 3.52 EPS for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

SLB has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Susquehanna reiterated a "positive" rating and issued a $77.00 price target on shares of Schlumberger in a research note on Monday, April 8th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their target price on Schlumberger from $66.00 to $69.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of Schlumberger from $69.00 to $70.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, January 22nd. Bank of America lifted their price target on shares of Schlumberger from $62.00 to $63.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Monday. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Schlumberger in a research note on Monday, April 1st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Schlumberger has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $70.31.

Insider Activity at Schlumberger

In other Schlumberger news, EVP Abdellah Merad sold 50,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $48.52, for a total value of $2,426,000.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 261,507 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,688,319.64. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In other Schlumberger news, EVP Abdellah Merad sold 50,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $48.52, for a total transaction of $2,426,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 261,507 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,688,319.64. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, VP Kevin Fyfe sold 20,223 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $52.05, for a total transaction of $1,052,607.15. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 31,198 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,623,855.90. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 172,191 shares of company stock worth $8,636,322 over the last three months. Company insiders own 0.26% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in SLB. Coppell Advisory Solutions LLC acquired a new stake in Schlumberger during the second quarter worth approximately $27,000. Acadian Asset Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Schlumberger during the 1st quarter worth approximately $25,000. Resurgent Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Schlumberger during the 4th quarter worth approximately $35,000. Tyler Stone Wealth Management bought a new stake in shares of Schlumberger in the 2nd quarter valued at $33,000. Finally, Aspire Private Capital LLC lifted its position in shares of Schlumberger by 145.4% during the 4th quarter. Aspire Private Capital LLC now owns 741 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $39,613,860,000 after acquiring an additional 439 shares during the period. 81.99% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.