Transocean (NYSE:RIG) Upgraded to “Sell” by StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Transocean (NYSE:RIG) to a sell rating in a research report report published on Thursday morning.

RIG has been the topic of a number of other research reports. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on shares of Transocean from $5.00 to $6.00 and gave the company an equal weight rating in a research note on Thursday, October 3rd. Benchmark reiterated a buy rating and set a $8.00 target price on shares of Transocean in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Citigroup cut shares of Transocean from a buy rating to a neutral rating in a report on Thursday, September 12th. Finally, DNB Markets raised shares of Transocean from a hold rating to a buy rating in a report on Tuesday, September 3rd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of Hold and a consensus target price of $6.88.

Transocean Stock Performance

Shares of Transocean stock remained flat at $4.25 during trading hours on Thursday. The stock had a trading volume of 742,808 shares, compared to its average volume of 18,415,070. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.72 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -9.40 and a beta of 2.79. Transocean has a 52 week low of $3.85 and a 52 week high of $7.96. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63, a current ratio of 1.36 and a quick ratio of 1.08. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $4.64 and its 200 day simple moving average is $5.33.

Transocean (NYSE:RIG) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The offshore drilling services provider reported ($0.15) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.08) by ($0.07). The company had revenue of $861.00 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $862.25 million. Transocean had a negative net margin of 11.34% and a negative return on equity of 4.76%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 18.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted ($0.15) earnings per share. Sell-side analysts forecast that Transocean will post -0.18 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Transocean

In related news, Director Perestroika purchased 1,500,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 12th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $4.13 per share, for a total transaction of $6,195,000.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 91,074,894 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $376,139,312.22. This trade represents a 0.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other news, Director Perestroika acquired 1,500,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 12th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $4.13 per share, with a total value of $6,195,000.00. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 91,074,894 shares in the company, valued at approximately $376,139,312.22. The trade was a 0.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director (Cyprus) Ltd Perestroika bought 2,000,000 shares of Transocean stock in a transaction on Friday, August 2nd. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $5.23 per share, with a total value of $10,460,000.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 89,574,894 shares in the company, valued at $468,476,695.62. This trade represents a 0.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 13.16% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Transocean

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Caas Capital Management LP bought a new position in shares of Transocean in the fourth quarter worth $147,000. Goehring & Rozencwajg Associates LLC increased its stake in Transocean by 3.4% during the 4th quarter. Goehring & Rozencwajg Associates LLC now owns 633,074 shares of the offshore drilling services provider’s stock valued at $4,020,000 after buying an additional 20,580 shares during the period. Orchard Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Transocean during the 4th quarter worth about $109,000. Virtu Financial LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Transocean in the 4th quarter worth approximately $530,000. Finally, Fisher Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Transocean by 11.0% in the fourth quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 27,714 shares of the offshore drilling services provider’s stock valued at $176,000 after acquiring an additional 2,743 shares in the last quarter. 67.73% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Transocean Company Profile

Transocean Ltd., together with its subsidiaries, provides offshore contract drilling services for oil and gas wells worldwide. It contracts mobile offshore drilling rigs, related equipment, and work crews to drill oil and gas wells. The company operates a fleet of mobile offshore drilling units, consisting of ultra-deepwater floaters and harsh environment floaters.