Transocean (NYSE:RIG) Sets New 52-Week Low – What’s Next?

Transocean Ltd. (NYSE:RIG)’s stock price hit a new 52-week low during trading on Monday . The stock traded as low as $3.30 and last traded at $3.32, with a volume of 1087511 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $3.36.

Analyst Ratings Changes

RIG has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Benchmark reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Transocean in a research note on Tuesday, December 3rd. Evercore ISI downgraded Transocean from an “outperform” rating to an “in-line” rating and lowered their price objective for the stock from $6.00 to $5.00 in a research report on Wednesday, January 15th. Susquehanna reduced their target price on Transocean from $7.00 to $6.50 and set a “positive” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, November 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised Transocean from an “underweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $5.00 price target on the stock in a report on Friday, December 6th. Finally, TD Cowen cut their price target on shares of Transocean from $6.50 to $5.50 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $5.81.

Transocean Price Performance

The company has a market cap of $2.90 billion, a PE ratio of -4.51, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.86 and a beta of 2.70. The business has a 50 day moving average of $3.79 and a 200 day moving average of $4.20. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60, a current ratio of 1.47 and a quick ratio of 1.34.

Transocean (NYSE:RIG) last released its earnings results on Monday, February 17th. The offshore drilling services provider reported ($0.09) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.02 by ($0.11). The firm had revenue of $952.00 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $962.28 million. Transocean had a negative net margin of 14.53% and a negative return on equity of 0.52%. As a group, research analysts predict that Transocean Ltd. will post 0.14 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Roderick James Mackenzie sold 22,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $4.05, for a total value of $89,100.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 229,596 shares in the company, valued at $929,863.80. This represents a 8.74 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 13.16% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Transocean

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in RIG. Twin Tree Management LP purchased a new position in shares of Transocean in the fourth quarter worth $27,000. Optiver Holding B.V. grew its holdings in shares of Transocean by 53.6% in the fourth quarter. Optiver Holding B.V. now owns 8,400 shares of the offshore drilling services provider’s stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 2,933 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc. grew its stake in shares of Transocean by 96.2% during the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 9,841 shares of the offshore drilling services provider’s stock valued at $37,000 after purchasing an additional 4,826 shares during the period. Adero Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Transocean during the 4th quarter valued at about $38,000. Finally, Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. purchased a new position in shares of Transocean in the fourth quarter worth approximately $40,000. 67.73% of the stock is currently 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.