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

Transocean Ltd. (NYSE:RIG - Get Free Report) was the target of some unusual options trading activity on Thursday. Investors acquired 53,405 put options on the stock. This represents an increase of 70% compared to the average daily volume of 31,374 put options.

Transocean Stock Performance

Shares of Transocean stock traded down $0.20 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $6.23. The company's stock had a trading volume of 19,813,912 shares, compared to its average volume of 17,929,908. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $5.54 and its 200 day simple moving average is $6.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a quick ratio of 1.22 and a current ratio of 1.52. Transocean has a one year low of $4.45 and a one year high of $8.88. The stock has a market cap of $5.11 billion, a P/E ratio of -4.91 and a beta of 2.78.

Transocean (NYSE:RIG - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 19th. The offshore drilling services provider reported ($0.09) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.21) by $0.12. Transocean had a negative net margin of 33.69% and a negative return on equity of 7.13%. The company had revenue of $741.00 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $779.17 million. During the same period last year, the firm posted ($0.49) EPS. As a group, analysts expect that Transocean will post 0.09 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

RIG has been the subject of several analyst reports. Susquehanna upgraded shares of Transocean from a "neutral" rating to a "positive" rating and upped their target price for the company from $5.50 to $9.00 in a research note on Monday. Barclays decreased their target price on shares of Transocean from $7.00 to $6.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 22nd. Citigroup decreased their target price on shares of Transocean from $9.00 to $7.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 21st. Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on shares of Transocean from $8.00 to $7.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, February 26th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of Transocean to a "sell" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 20th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $8.50.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of RIG. BlackRock Inc. lifted its position in shares of Transocean by 64.4% in the 1st quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 27,992,307 shares of the offshore drilling services provider's stock worth $178,031,000 after buying an additional 10,962,276 shares during the last quarter. Capital World Investors increased its holdings in shares of Transocean by 34.7% in the 4th quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 39,014,318 shares of the offshore drilling services provider's stock worth $247,741,000 after acquiring an additional 10,049,077 shares during the period. Renaissance Technologies LLC increased its holdings in shares of Transocean by 5,526.9% in the 1st quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 7,872,028 shares of the offshore drilling services provider's stock worth $35,975,000 after acquiring an additional 7,732,128 shares during the period. Morgan Stanley increased its holdings in shares of Transocean by 60.7% in the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 18,330,357 shares of the offshore drilling services provider's stock worth $83,586,000 after acquiring an additional 6,925,085 shares during the period. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its holdings in shares of Transocean by 23.2% in the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 35,690,620 shares of the offshore drilling services provider's stock worth $226,641,000 after acquiring an additional 6,719,483 shares during the period. 67.73% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.