Think of the French way of saying the name of discount retailer Target
At a time when rival Halliburton
Schlumberger is the world's No. 1 energy services company, with top-notch drilling, seismic, and pumping technologies. It's taken to focusing only on its core business, shearing off everything not related to the oil field services, particularly information technology. Thinking that China and Russia will be the next big growth markets, it has taken a position in Russia's largest independent oil field services contractor, PatroAlliance, and will buy the rest of the company sometime over the next two years.
Integrated oil company ConocoPhillips
Most other major oil companies will be announcing their earnings this week, and they're expected to be gushers too. ChevronTexaco
Schlumberger's board of directors was bolstered enough by the company's performance to authorize a share buyback program of 15 million shares by 2006. It has a strong balance sheet to support the effort, and its only disappointment was that of WesternGeco, its seismic joint venture with Baker Hughes
Whether the company's name reminds you of charbroiled ground beef or a fine French wine, its quarterly performance was such that even at these lofty price levels, it should warm your heart and your portfolio.
Fool contributor Rich Duprey is warmed by a bottle of Santa Margherita Pinot Grigio. He owns shares in Carbo Ceramics but not of any other stock mentioned in this article.