Kovack Advisors Inc. Boosts Stock Position in Schlumberger Limited (NYSE:SLB)

Kovack Advisors Inc. lifted its position in shares of Schlumberger Limited (NYSE:SLB) by 149.3% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 40,893 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after purchasing an additional 24,489 shares during the period. Kovack Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Schlumberger were worth $2,128,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. DAVENPORT & Co LLC raised its stake in Schlumberger by 0.9% in the third quarter. DAVENPORT & Co LLC now owns 54,995 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $3,206,000 after buying an additional 506 shares in the last quarter. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. increased its stake in shares of Schlumberger by 68.8% during the third quarter. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 1,722 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $102,000 after purchasing an additional 702 shares in the last quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC increased its stake in shares of Schlumberger by 3,008.8% during the third quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 6,031 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $352,000 after purchasing an additional 5,837 shares in the last quarter. Koshinski Asset Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Schlumberger during the third quarter valued at approximately $201,000. Finally, Oak Thistle LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Schlumberger during the third quarter valued at approximately $910,000. 81.99% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Schlumberger

In related news, EVP Abdellah Merad sold 50,000 shares of Schlumberger stock in a transaction dated 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 directly owns 261,507 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $12,688,319.64. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other Schlumberger news, insider Gavin Rennick sold 20,045 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $48.77, for a total value of $977,594.65. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 77,563 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,782,747.51. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Abdellah Merad sold 50,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the executive vice president now owns 261,507 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $12,688,319.64. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 90,545 shares of company stock worth $4,458,430 in the last three months. Insiders own 0.26% of the company’s stock.

Schlumberger Price Performance

NYSE SLB traded down $0.24 on Friday, reaching $49.20. The company had a trading volume of 8,247,654 shares, compared to its average volume of 11,185,043. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $51.74 and its 200 day moving average price is $52.17. Schlumberger Limited has a 12 month low of $42.73 and a 12 month high of $62.12. The company has a quick ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49. The stock has a market capitalization of $70.23 billion, a PE ratio of 16.35, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.95 and a beta of 1.60.

Schlumberger (NYSE:SLB) last posted its earnings results on Friday, April 19th. The oil and gas company reported $0.75 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.75. Schlumberger had a net margin of 12.72% and a return on equity of 21.88%. The firm had revenue of $8.71 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.70 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.63 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 12.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts predict that Schlumberger Limited will post 3.5 earnings per share for the current year.

Schlumberger Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 11th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, June 5th will be issued a $0.275 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, June 5th. This is an increase from Schlumberger’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. This represents a $1.10 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.24%. Schlumberger’s payout ratio is 36.54%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Benchmark reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $68.00 price target on shares of Schlumberger in a report on Monday. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of Schlumberger from $69.00 to $70.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, January 22nd. The Goldman Sachs Group restated a “buy” rating on shares of Schlumberger in a report on Monday, April 1st. Stifel Nicolaus restated a “buy” rating and issued a $64.00 target price on shares of Schlumberger in a report on Monday. Finally, Morgan Stanley reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $65.00 price target on shares of Schlumberger in a research note on Monday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $69.67.

About Schlumberger

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.