Transocean Ltd. (NYSE:RIG) Stock Position Reduced by Principal Financial Group Inc.

Principal Financial Group Inc. decreased its stake in Transocean Ltd. (NYSE:RIG) by 28.7% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 51,007 shares of the offshore drilling services provider’s stock after selling 20,511 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in Transocean were worth $217,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. grew its stake in Transocean by 19.0% in the third quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 33,442 shares of the offshore drilling services provider’s stock valued at $142,000 after purchasing an additional 5,344 shares in the last quarter. Murphy Pohlad Asset Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Transocean by 8.4% during the 3rd quarter. Murphy Pohlad Asset Management LLC now owns 106,950 shares of the offshore drilling services provider’s stock worth $455,000 after purchasing an additional 8,300 shares in the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Transocean by 335.3% in the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 196,699 shares of the offshore drilling services provider’s stock valued at $836,000 after buying an additional 151,507 shares in the last quarter. Glenorchy Capital Ltd increased its holdings in Transocean by 34.0% in the third quarter. Glenorchy Capital Ltd now owns 586,219 shares of the offshore drilling services provider’s stock worth $2,491,000 after buying an additional 148,755 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Moss Adams Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in Transocean during the third quarter valued at approximately $132,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 67.73% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Roderick James Mackenzie sold 20,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, November 18th. The stock was 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 in the company, valued at approximately $1,333,576.53. This represents a 6.04 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Perestroika acquired 1,500,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 12th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $4.13 per share, for a total transaction of $6,195,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 91,074,894 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $376,139,312.22. This trade represents a 1.67 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 13.16% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Transocean Stock Performance

Shares of RIG opened at $4.38 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $3.84 billion, a P/E ratio of -5.84 and a beta of 2.78. Transocean Ltd. has a twelve month low of $3.85 and a twelve month high of $6.88. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64, a quick ratio of 1.34 and a current ratio of 1.64. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $4.33 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $4.93.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently issued reports on RIG. Susquehanna decreased their price target on Transocean from $7.00 to $6.50 and set a “positive” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, November 1st. StockNews.com upgraded Transocean to a “sell” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 12th. Barclays reduced their price objective on shares of Transocean from $6.00 to $4.50 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Morgan Stanley raised their target price 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, Citigroup downgraded shares of Transocean from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, September 12th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $6.63.

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.