AGF Management Ltd. Sells 2,157,019 Shares of Schlumberger Limited (NYSE:SLB)

AGF Management Ltd. lessened its stake in Schlumberger Limited (NYSE:SLB) by 83.3% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 431,465 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after selling 2,157,019 shares during the period. AGF Management Ltd.’s holdings in Schlumberger were worth $16,542,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of SLB. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Schlumberger by 0.9% in the 3rd quarter. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. now owns 60,405 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $2,534,000 after acquiring an additional 550 shares during the last quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC raised its position in Schlumberger by 26.0% during the 3rd quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 307,040 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $12,880,000 after purchasing an additional 63,413 shares during the last quarter. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC bought a new position in Schlumberger during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Kennebec Savings Bank bought a new position in Schlumberger during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $51,000. Finally, Venturi Wealth Management LLC raised its position in Schlumberger by 84.0% during the 3rd quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,294 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $96,000 after purchasing an additional 1,047 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 81.99% of the company’s stock.

Schlumberger Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:SLB opened at $40.09 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $54.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.89, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 10.10 and a beta of 1.47. Schlumberger Limited has a 52 week low of $36.52 and a 52 week high of $55.69. The company has a quick ratio of 1.11, a current ratio of 1.45 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $40.83 and a 200 day moving average of $41.57.

Schlumberger (NYSE:SLB) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 17th. The oil and gas company reported $0.92 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.90 by $0.02. Schlumberger had a net margin of 12.29% and a return on equity of 21.90%. The business had revenue of $9.28 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.24 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.86 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Schlumberger Limited will post 3.38 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Schlumberger Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 3rd. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, February 5th will be issued a $0.285 dividend. This is a positive change from Schlumberger’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.28. This represents a $1.14 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.84%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, February 5th. Schlumberger’s payout ratio is currently 36.66%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Schlumberger news, insider Gavin Rennick sold 26,990 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on 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 of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,192,657.28. This represents a 33.50 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Vijay Kasibhatla sold 25,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $43.94, for a total transaction of $1,098,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 49,595 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,179,204.30. This trade represents a 33.51 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 290,772 shares of company stock valued at $12,546,660. 0.26% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have commented on the company. Atb Cap Markets lowered Schlumberger from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on Schlumberger from $48.00 to $50.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. Sanford C. Bernstein raised Schlumberger to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 12th. Piper Sandler initiated coverage on Schlumberger in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $47.00 target price for the company. Finally, TD Cowen increased their target price on Schlumberger from $53.00 to $55.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Schlumberger presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $55.81.

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.