Core Laboratories N.V. (CLB) Stock

Core Laboratories N.V. (CLB) is a Energy stock trading at $12.48 (as of 2026-09-02), with a market capitalization of $572.87M and a trailing P/E of 23.5. Figures are sourced from first-party U.S. SEC EDGAR filings and market data.

Core Laboratories N.V. delivers reservoir characterization and production enhancement services and related products to oil and gas operators in the United States, Canada, and other international markets. Its offerings are organized into Reservoir Description and Production Enhancement segments, supporting reservoir rock/fluid/gas analysis and laboratory or field studies as well as well completion, perforation, stimulation, and diagnostic services.

Understand Core Laboratories N.V.: how it makes money

Core Laboratories runs the lab-and-field diagnostics that tell oil operators what is in their reservoirs: rock and fluid analysis (reservoir description) plus well-completion diagnostics (production enhancement). It bills per-sample lab fees and per-project service contracts, with the reservoir characterization side carrying roughly 80% of revenue.

Every reservoir that gets drilled or reworked sends rock and fluid samples through Core Labs' pipeline, making revenue a direct proxy for upstream drilling activity; at 7% operating margin the model is volume-driven rather than pricing-driven, and the moat is long-term data relationships and switching cost rather than intellectual monopoly.

Business quality (Weak): A thin-margin lab-services business with 7% operating leverage on revenue that is declining 4% year over year, yet trading at a 41% P/E premium to its peer group. The quality grade is weak: commodity-like lab testing with limited pricing power, cyclically tied to upstream capex, and vulnerable to cost shocks that the narrow margin cannot absorb.

Valuation: At 23× earnings, CLB trades 41% above the Petroleum & Natural Gas average (16×).

Bull case

  • International project pipeline multi-year: Management highlighted a committed project portfolio and rising global final investment decisions, pointing to a multi-year reservoir-services opportunity from offshore and international drilling programs that can offset softness in U.S. onshore activity.
  • Complex completions drive diagnostics demand: As U.S. land operators adopt more complex completion designs (multi-stage fracturing, advanced cementing), they require more production-enhancement diagnostics, expanding the addressable scope of the segment that has been under pressure.
  • Capital return alongside growth: Management continues share repurchases alongside dividends and reinvestment, signaling confidence in recurring free-cash-flow generation even at a 7% operating margin, which supports the per-share story of a shrinking float.

Bear case

  • U.S. land completions decelerating: Management guided that U.S. land completion activity will run below first-half 2025 levels, directly pressuring the production-enhancement segment, which has already declined 6.6% year over year on $40M quarterly revenue.
  • Sanctions disrupting crude-assay demand: Ongoing geopolitical sanctions are reducing demand for crude-assay laboratory services within the reservoir-description segment, the line that already accounts for 80% of total revenue at $80M per quarter, creating a structural revenue headwind beyond the normal cycle.
Valuation — source: SEC EDGAR (first-party)
Price$12.48
Market Cap$572.87M
P/E Ratio23.5
EV / EBITDA10.6
Price / Book2.05
Price / Sales1.10
FCF Yield4.5%
DCF Value (model)$9.54
DCF Upside vs Price-23.6%
Profitability & Growth — source: SEC EDGAR
Revenue (TTM)$526.52M
Net Margin5.6%
Revenue Growth (YoY)-4.3%
EPS Growth (YoY)-43.5%
FCF Growth (YoY)-70.1%
Financial Health — source: SEC EDGAR
Altman Z-Score2.96 (grey)
Piotroski F-Score7/9 (strong)
Valuation vs Sector & Industry
Stock P/E23.5
Sector P/E (Energy)16.1
Industry P/E (Petroleum & Natural Gas)15.4
vs Sector46.4%
vs Industry52.8%
Company
SectorEnergy
IndustryPetroleum & Natural Gas
CEOLawrence V. Bruno
Employees3,400
CountryNL
IPO Date1995-09-21

Core Laboratories N.V. earnings call transcripts

  • CLB Q4 FY25 earnings call transcript (reported 2026-02-04) · analysis
  • CLB Q2 FY25 earnings call transcript (reported 2025-07-23) · analysis

All CLB earnings calls

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CLB earnings history · CLB institutional & insider holders · CLB KPIs & operating metrics · CLB financials · CLB investor presentations & press releases · CLB SEC filings · CLB peers · Congress trades · Insider trades · Short interest · Stock screener

Data as of 2026-09-02.

Figures sourced from U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC EDGAR) filings and market data. Not personalized investment advice.