Transocean (NYSE:RIG) Sets New 12-Month Low After Earnings Miss

Transocean Ltd. (NYSE:RIG) hit a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Tuesday after the company announced weaker than expected quarterly earnings. The company traded as low as $3.38 and last traded at $3.54, with a volume of 4262733 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $3.53.

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 0.51%. The company had revenue of $952.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $962.28 million.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have commented on the stock. Barclays upgraded shares of Transocean from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $4.50 price target on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, December 18th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Transocean to a “sell” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 12th. Evercore ISI lowered shares of Transocean from an “outperform” rating to an “in-line” rating and cut their target price for the company from $6.00 to $5.00 in a research note on Wednesday, January 15th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of Transocean from an “underweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $5.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Friday, December 6th. Finally, Susquehanna cut 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. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $5.94.

Insider Buying and Selling

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

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Transocean

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Twin Tree Management LP purchased a new position in Transocean during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Optiver Holding B.V. boosted its stake in shares of Transocean by 53.6% during the 4th quarter. Optiver Holding B.V. now owns 8,400 shares of the offshore drilling services provider’s stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 2,933 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc. grew its holdings 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 acquiring an additional 4,826 shares in the last quarter. Adero Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Transocean during the 4th quarter valued at $38,000. Finally, Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. acquired a new position in shares of Transocean in the fourth quarter worth $40,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 67.73% of the company’s stock.

Transocean Trading Up 3.6 %

The firm has a market capitalization of $3.12 billion, a PE ratio of -4.88, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.85 and a beta of 2.70. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64, a current ratio of 1.64 and a quick ratio of 1.34. The company has a fifty day moving average of $3.80 and a 200-day moving average of $4.23.

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.