Highland Capital Management LLC Boosts Stock Position in Schlumberger Limited (NYSE:SLB)

Highland Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Schlumberger Limited (NYSE:SLB - Free Report) by 2,494.0% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 101,426 shares of the oil and gas company's stock after buying an additional 97,516 shares during the period. Highland Capital Management LLC's holdings in Schlumberger were worth $5,278,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vision Capital Management Inc. raised its stake in Schlumberger by 1.1% during the fourth quarter. Vision Capital Management Inc. now owns 122,326 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $6,366,000 after buying an additional 1,285 shares in the last quarter. Legacy Bridge LLC raised its position in shares of Schlumberger by 39.4% during the 4th quarter. Legacy Bridge LLC now owns 853 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $44,000 after purchasing an additional 241 shares during the period. F&V Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in Schlumberger in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $208,000. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. increased its position in Schlumberger by 85.3% in the 4th quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 313,518 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $16,315,000 after acquiring an additional 144,327 shares during the period. Finally, Meyer Handelman Co. increased its position in Schlumberger by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. Meyer Handelman Co. now owns 119,852 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $6,237,000 after acquiring an additional 400 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.99% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at Schlumberger

In other Schlumberger news, CAO Howard Guild sold 22,853 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $51.66, for a total transaction of $1,180,585.98. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 22,181 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,145,870.46. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In related news, CAO Howard Guild sold 22,853 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $51.66, for a total value of $1,180,585.98. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 22,181 shares in the company, valued at $1,145,870.46. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CFO Stephane Biguet sold 6,250 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $48.64, for a total transaction of $304,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 242,932 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,816,212.48. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 172,191 shares of company stock valued at $8,636,322 over the last three months. 0.26% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Schlumberger Trading Down 0.2 %

Shares of SLB traded down $0.09 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $54.81. The stock had a trading volume of 7,689,950 shares, compared to its average volume of 11,501,060. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $50.37 and a 200 day moving average of $53.18. The company has a market cap of $78.24 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.77, a P/E/G ratio of 0.97 and a beta of 1.59. The company has a quick ratio of 1.00, a current ratio of 1.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51. Schlumberger Limited 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, January 19th. The oil and gas company reported $0.86 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.84 by $0.02. Schlumberger had a return on equity of 21.97% and a net margin of 12.68%. The company had revenue of $8.99 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $8.96 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.71 EPS. Schlumberger's revenue for the quarter was up 14.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Schlumberger Limited will post 3.54 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Schlumberger Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 4th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, February 7th will be issued a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, February 6th. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.82%. Schlumberger's dividend payout ratio is presently 34.25%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the company. Susquehanna reaffirmed a "positive" rating and set a $77.00 price target on shares of Schlumberger in a research note on Tuesday, February 13th. Benchmark reissued a "buy" rating and set a $68.00 price objective on shares of Schlumberger in a research report on Monday, March 4th. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price target on Schlumberger from $63.00 to $64.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, January 22nd. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an "outperform" rating and set a $66.00 price objective on shares of Schlumberger in a research report on Thursday, February 8th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on Schlumberger from $69.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, January 22nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Schlumberger currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $70.87.

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.