Schwartz Investment Counsel Inc. Has $12.56 Million Position in SLB Limited $SLB

Schwartz Investment Counsel Inc. grew its holdings in shares of SLB Limited (NYSE:SLB) by 3.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 327,300 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after acquiring an additional 10,000 shares during the period. Schwartz Investment Counsel Inc.’s holdings in SLB were worth $12,562,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of SLB. Ballentine Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of SLB by 2.2% in the 4th quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC now owns 10,288 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $395,000 after buying an additional 218 shares during the period. Foster Victor Wealth Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of SLB by 3.0% in the 4th quarter. Foster Victor Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 8,281 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $318,000 after buying an additional 238 shares during the period. Avidian Wealth Enterprises LLC grew its stake in shares of SLB by 1.6% in the 4th quarter. Avidian Wealth Enterprises LLC now owns 16,574 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $636,000 after buying an additional 254 shares during the period. apricus wealth LLC grew its stake in shares of SLB by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. apricus wealth LLC now owns 84,740 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $3,252,000 after buying an additional 270 shares during the period. Finally, ABN AMRO Bank N.V. grew its stake in shares of SLB by 1.8% in the 4th quarter. ABN AMRO Bank N.V. now owns 15,221 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $582,000 after buying an additional 275 shares during the period. 81.99% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Steve Matthew Gassen sold 53,379 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $56.18, for a total value of $2,998,832.22. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 47,421 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,664,111.78. This trade represents a 52.96% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director La Chevardiere Patrick De sold 2,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $54.33, for a total transaction of $108,660.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 16,953 shares in the company, valued at approximately $921,056.49. The trade was a 10.55% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 0.16% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

SLB Price Performance

Shares of NYSE SLB opened at $55.67 on Wednesday. SLB Limited has a fifty-two week low of $31.64 and a fifty-two week high of $57.20. The stock has a market cap of $83.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.31, a PEG ratio of 3.87 and a beta of 0.72. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a current ratio of 1.34. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $51.06 and its 200 day simple moving average is $45.36.

SLB (NYSE:SLB) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Saturday, April 25th. The oil and gas company reported $0.52 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.51 by $0.01. SLB had a net margin of 9.26% and a return on equity of 15.54%. The business had revenue of $8.72 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $8.76 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.72 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts anticipate that SLB Limited will post 2.61 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

SLB Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 9th. Investors of record on Wednesday, June 3rd will be given a $0.295 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, June 3rd. This represents a $1.18 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.1%. SLB’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 51.53%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have recently commented on the company. Susquehanna raised their target price on SLB from $60.00 to $65.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a research note on Monday, April 27th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their target price on SLB from $53.00 to $60.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 4th. Loop Capital set a $48.00 target price on SLB in a research note on Tuesday, January 27th. TD Cowen raised their target price on SLB from $55.00 to $66.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, April 27th. Finally, Morgan Stanley set a $57.00 target price on SLB in a research note on Monday, April 27th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have issued a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, SLB currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $59.74.

SLB Company Profile

SLB (NYSE: SLB), historically known as Schlumberger, is a leading global provider of technology, integrated project management and information solutions for the energy industry. Founded by Conrad and Marcel Schlumberger in 1926, the company develops and supplies products and services used across the exploration, drilling, completion and production phases of oil and gas development. Its offerings are intended to help operators characterize reservoirs, drill and complete wells, optimize production and manage field operations throughout the asset lifecycle.

SLB’s product and service portfolio spans reservoir characterization and well testing, wireline and logging services, directional drilling and drilling tools, well construction and completion technologies, production systems, and subsea equipment.