Transocean (NYSE:RIG) Stock Price Down 1.5% - Should You Sell?

Transocean Ltd. (NYSE:RIG - Get Free Report)'s share price fell 1.5% during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as low as $3.97 and last traded at $4.03. 4,553,210 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 81% from the average session volume of 23,991,482 shares. The stock had previously closed at $4.09.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on RIG shares. Susquehanna reduced their price objective 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 raised Transocean to a "sell" rating in a report on Tuesday, November 12th. 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. Benchmark restated a "hold" rating on shares of Transocean in a report on Tuesday, December 3rd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of Transocean from an "underweight" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $5.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Friday, December 6th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $6.17.

Transocean Stock Down 0.5 %

The firm has a market cap of $3.56 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -5.43 and a beta of 2.73. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $4.07 and a 200-day moving average price of $4.51. The company has a quick ratio of 1.34, a current ratio of 1.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64.

Insider Buying and Selling at Transocean

In other Transocean news, EVP Roderick James Mackenzie sold 20,000 shares of Transocean stock in a transaction on Monday, November 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $4.29, for a total transaction of $85,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 310,857 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,333,576.53. The trade was a 6.04 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 13.16% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Transocean

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of RIG. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. boosted its holdings in Transocean by 138.8% in the second quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 4,633 shares of the offshore drilling services provider's stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 2,693 shares during the last quarter. Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC acquired a new position in shares of Transocean in the 3rd quarter valued at about $46,000. Atria Investments Inc acquired a new stake in Transocean during the third quarter worth approximately $51,000. Pallas Capital Advisors LLC increased its holdings in 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 worth $57,000 after purchasing an additional 3,127 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Abel Hall LLC acquired a new position in Transocean in the third quarter valued at approximately $65,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 67.73% of the company's stock.

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.