Transocean (NYSE:RIG) Reaches New 12-Month Low – Time to Sell?

Transocean Ltd. (NYSE:RIG) hit a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Monday . The company 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

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on RIG shares. Barclays raised Transocean from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $4.50 target price on the stock in a report on Wednesday, December 18th. StockNews.com raised shares of Transocean to a “sell” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of Transocean from an “underweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $5.00 price target for the company in a report on Friday, December 6th. Benchmark reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Transocean in a report on Tuesday, December 3rd. Finally, Susquehanna decreased their price objective 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, six have issued a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $5.81.

Transocean Stock Performance

The company has a current ratio of 1.47, a quick ratio of 1.34 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $3.79 and its 200 day moving average is $4.20. 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.

Transocean (NYSE:RIG) last issued 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). Transocean had a negative net margin of 14.53% and a negative return on equity of 0.52%. The business had revenue of $952.00 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $962.28 million. As a group, research analysts predict that Transocean Ltd. will post 0.14 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Transocean news, EVP Roderick James Mackenzie sold 22,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3.85, for a total value of $84,700.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 313,072 shares in the company, valued at $1,205,327.20. This represents a 6.57 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders own 13.16% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Transocean

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. increased its position in Transocean by 10.9% in the 3rd quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. now owns 25,170 shares of the offshore drilling services provider’s stock valued at $107,000 after acquiring an additional 2,469 shares during the period. Optiver Holding B.V. increased 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 valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 2,933 shares during the period. Ballentine Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of Transocean by 19.4% during the fourth quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC now owns 18,247 shares of the offshore drilling services provider’s stock worth $68,000 after purchasing an additional 2,963 shares during the last quarter. Van Den Berg Management I Inc. raised its position in Transocean by 11.9% during the 4th quarter. Van Den Berg Management I Inc. now owns 28,155 shares of the offshore drilling services provider’s stock worth $106,000 after buying an additional 3,000 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Pallas Capital Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Transocean by 25.6% in the fourth quarter. Pallas Capital Advisors LLC now owns 15,332 shares of the offshore drilling services provider’s stock valued at $57,000 after acquiring an additional 3,127 shares in the last quarter. 67.73% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.