Transocean (NYSE:RIG) Raised to “Neutral” at JPMorgan Chase & Co.

Transocean (NYSE:RIG) was upgraded by investment analysts at JPMorgan Chase & Co. from an “underweight” rating to a “neutral” rating in a note issued to investors on Friday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has a $5.00 price objective on the offshore drilling services provider’s stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co.‘s price objective indicates a potential upside of 19.76% from the company’s current price.

RIG has been the subject of a number of other research reports. Susquehanna reduced their price objective on Transocean from $7.00 to $6.50 and set a “positive” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, November 1st. DNB Markets raised Transocean from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 3rd. Citigroup cut shares of Transocean from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, September 12th. Morgan Stanley raised 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. Finally, Barclays dropped their target price on shares of Transocean from $6.00 to $4.50 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $6.25.

Transocean Price Performance

Shares of RIG opened at $4.18 on Friday. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $4.30 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $4.85. Transocean has a fifty-two week low of $3.85 and a fifty-two week high of $6.88. The stock has a market cap of $3.66 billion, a PE ratio of -5.57 and a beta of 2.75. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64, a quick ratio of 1.34 and a current ratio of 1.64.

Insider Transactions at Transocean

In other 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 transaction of $85,800.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 310,857 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,333,576.53. This represents a 6.04 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director Perestroika acquired 1,500,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 12th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $4.13 per share, for a total transaction of $6,195,000.00. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 91,074,894 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $376,139,312.22. The trade was a 1.67 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Company insiders own 13.16% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Transocean

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in RIG. Franklin Resources Inc. bought a new position in shares of Transocean in the third quarter worth about $157,000. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Transocean by 4.1% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 17,245,298 shares of the offshore drilling services provider’s stock worth $73,307,000 after acquiring an additional 680,242 shares during the period. Abel Hall LLC purchased a new position in Transocean during the third quarter valued at approximately $65,000. Barclays PLC boosted its position in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 609,681 shares during the period. Finally, Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Transocean in the third quarter worth $46,000. 67.73% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other 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.