What to Look for in Schlumberger Earnings

Schlumberger Ltd. (NYSE: SLB) is set to report its fourth-quarter financial results Thursday after the markets close. Thomson Reuters has consensus estimates of $0.63 in earnings per share (EPS) on $7.80 billion in revenue. In the comparable period of the previous year, it posted EPS of $1.50 and $12.64 billion in revenue.

Many investors are unlikely to view this as a value stock, but given the debacle in the energy sector over the past year, the decline in share prices has pushed it almost to value levels. Schlumberger remains the largest oilfield services company in the world for now, with far-reaching operations around the globe, and it could be poised for years of solid growth despite the huge turn down in oil pricing.

Wall Street analysts think the company will continue to drive margins on execution, technologies and efficiencies. Russia, Saudi Arabia, Iraq and China are expected by some to be the strongest markets, if geopolitical concerns remain somewhat in check.

Schlumberger announced last August a deal to buy oilfield services giant Cameron International in a deal expected to cost about $12.7 billion in cash and stock. Wall Street analysts note what they term the company’s “drive to disrupt the status quo,” which includes transformation initiatives like the gigantic purchase of Cameron. We can expect an update from this deal in the earnings report.
[recirclink id=309864]
Prior to the release of the earnings report, a few analysts weighed in on Schlumberger:

• Deutsche Bank has a Buy rating with a $79 price target.
• Barclays has a $75 price target.
• Oppenheimer reiterated a Buy rating.
• Susquehanna has an $88 price target.
• Sterne Agee CRT reiterated a Buy rating.

So far in 2016, Schlumberger basically has stayed in line with the broad markets, with the stock down 12% year to date. Over the past 52 weeks, the number gets worse and the stock is down over 22%.

Shares of Schlumberger were trading up 1.4% at $61.90 on Thursday, with a consensus analyst price target of $86.28 and a 52-week trading range of $59.60 to $95.13.