Transocean Target of Unusually High Options Trading (NYSE:RIG)

Transocean Ltd. (NYSE:RIG) saw some unusual options trading activity on Friday. Investors purchased 20,324 put options on the stock. This is an increase of 32% compared to the typical volume of 15,440 put options.

Transocean Price Performance

Shares of Transocean stock opened at $2.96 on Friday. Transocean has a 52 week low of $2.95 and a 52 week high of $6.88. The stock has a market cap of $2.60 billion, a PE ratio of -4.05, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.86 and a beta of 2.70. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $3.74 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $4.14. The company has a current ratio of 1.47, a quick ratio of 1.34 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60.

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

Insider Buying and Selling at Transocean

In other news, EVP Roderick James Mackenzie sold 22,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $3.85, for a total value of $84,700.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 313,072 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,205,327.20. This trade represents a 6.57 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 13.16% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Transocean

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Creative Planning grew its stake in Transocean by 63.0% in the third quarter. Creative Planning now owns 290,993 shares of the offshore drilling services provider’s stock valued at $1,237,000 after purchasing an additional 112,512 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. Murphy Pohlad Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in Transocean by 8.4% in the third quarter. Murphy Pohlad Asset Management LLC now owns 106,950 shares of the offshore drilling services provider’s stock worth $455,000 after buying an additional 8,300 shares during the last quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. raised its position in Transocean by 19.0% during 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 acquiring an additional 5,344 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Atria Investments Inc acquired a new stake in Transocean in the third quarter valued at approximately $51,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 67.73% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the company. TD Cowen lowered their target price 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. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised shares of Transocean from an “underweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $5.00 target price on the stock in a report on Friday, December 6th. Susquehanna lowered their target price on Transocean from $7.00 to $6.50 and set a “positive” rating for the company in a report on Friday, November 1st. Benchmark restated a “hold” rating on shares of Transocean in a research report on Tuesday, December 3rd. Finally, Barclays dropped their target price on Transocean from $4.50 to $4.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $5.75.

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.