Transocean (NYSE:RIG) Stock Price Up 9% – Still a Buy?

Transocean Ltd. (NYSE:RIG) rose 9% during mid-day trading on Thursday . The company traded as high as $4.35 and last traded at $4.34. Approximately 21,783,191 shares were traded during mid-day trading, an increase of 19% from the average daily volume of 18,362,363 shares. The stock had previously closed at $3.98.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Benchmark downgraded shares of Transocean from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 15th. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on shares of Transocean from $5.00 to $6.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 3rd. Barclays cut their price target on Transocean from $6.00 to $4.50 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Citigroup cut Transocean from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 12th. Finally, Susquehanna reduced their price target on Transocean from $7.00 to $6.50 and set a “positive” rating for the company in a research report on Friday. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $6.63.

Transocean Stock Performance

The business has a 50 day moving average price of $4.34 and a 200 day moving average price of $5.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64, a current ratio of 1.64 and a quick ratio of 1.08.

Transocean (NYSE:RIG) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The offshore drilling services provider reported ($0.15) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.08) by ($0.07). The firm had revenue of $861.00 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $862.25 million. Transocean had a negative net margin of 18.81% and a negative return on equity of 1.48%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 18.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted ($0.15) earnings per share. Analysts anticipate that Transocean Ltd. will post -0.18 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Transocean

In other Transocean news, Director Perestroika bought 1,500,000 shares of Transocean stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 12th. The shares were acquired at an average cost 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 of the company’s stock, valued at $376,139,312.22. The trade was a 0.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 13.16% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Transocean

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Capital World Investors boosted its stake in Transocean by 18.8% in the 1st quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 46,334,990 shares of the offshore drilling services provider’s stock worth $290,984,000 after purchasing an additional 7,320,672 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its stake in shares of Transocean by 19.0% during the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 36,725,995 shares of the offshore drilling services provider’s stock worth $196,484,000 after acquiring an additional 5,856,414 shares in the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. acquired a new stake in Transocean in the 2nd quarter valued at $16,179,000. American Century Companies Inc. lifted its position in Transocean by 24.3% during the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 13,437,572 shares of the offshore drilling services provider’s stock worth $71,891,000 after buying an additional 2,623,615 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its position in shares of Transocean by 18.3% in the second quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 16,858,264 shares of the offshore drilling services provider’s stock valued at $90,192,000 after acquiring an additional 2,606,017 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 67.73% of the company’s stock.

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.