Transocean (NYSE:RIG) Trading Up 1.7% – Should You Buy?

Transocean Ltd. (NYSE:RIG)’s share price shot up 1.7% during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $3.56 and last traded at $3.53. 13,408,211 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 28% from the average session volume of 18,729,721 shares. The stock had previously closed at $3.47.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on RIG. Barclays raised Transocean from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $4.50 price target on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, December 18th. StockNews.com upgraded Transocean to a “sell” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised shares of Transocean from an “underweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $5.00 target price for the company in a research report on Friday, December 6th. Citigroup downgraded shares of Transocean from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 12th. Finally, Susquehanna decreased their target price on shares of Transocean from $7.00 to $6.50 and set a “positive” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $6.25.

Transocean Stock Performance

The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $4.15 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $4.65. The company has a market cap of $3.09 billion, a PE ratio of -4.71 and a beta of 2.75. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64, a current ratio of 1.64 and a quick ratio of 1.34.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Roderick James Mackenzie sold 20,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $4.29, for a total value of $85,800.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 310,857 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,333,576.53. The trade was a 6.04 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 12.54% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Transocean

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Franklin Resources Inc. acquired a new stake in Transocean in the third quarter valued at approximately $157,000. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Transocean by 4.1% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 17,245,298 shares of the offshore drilling services provider’s stock valued at $73,307,000 after buying an additional 680,242 shares during the period. Abel Hall LLC bought a new position in Transocean in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $65,000. Barclays PLC raised its position in Transocean by 60.1% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 1,623,924 shares of the offshore drilling services provider’s stock worth $6,902,000 after acquiring an additional 609,681 shares during the period. Finally, Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC bought a new stake in Transocean in the 3rd quarter valued at $46,000. 67.73% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Transocean

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.