Fearnley Fonds Downgrades Transocean (NYSE:RIG) to Hold

Transocean (NYSE:RIG) was downgraded by research analysts at Fearnley Fonds from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday,Zacks.com reports.

RIG has been the topic of a number of other research reports. BTIG Research increased their target price on Transocean from $6.00 to $10.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday. Citigroup increased their price objective on shares of Transocean from $4.25 to $4.50 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, December 11th. Pareto Securities lowered shares of Transocean from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating and set a $5.25 target price on the stock. in a research report on Tuesday. Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Transocean in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. Finally, Barclays lifted their price objective on Transocean from $4.00 to $4.50 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 5th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $5.22.

Transocean Price Performance

Shares of Transocean stock opened at $6.01 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $6.61 billion, a PE ratio of -1.83 and a beta of 1.46. Transocean has a twelve month low of $1.97 and a twelve month high of $6.05. The company has a quick ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $4.48 and a 200 day moving average price of $3.80.

Insider Activity

In other Transocean news, insider Jeremy D. Thigpen sold 500,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $4.32, for a total transaction of $2,160,000.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 2,136,223 shares in the company, valued at $9,228,483.36. This represents a 18.97% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director Perestroika acquired 1,500,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 24th. The stock was bought at an average price of $4.02 per share, with a total value of $6,030,000.00. Following the purchase, the director directly owned 96,574,894 shares in the company, valued at approximately $388,231,073.88. This trade represents a 1.58% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 712,970 shares of company stock worth $3,152,132 in the last quarter. Insiders own 12.27% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Fruth Investment Management lifted its position in Transocean by 2.8% in the fourth quarter. Fruth Investment Management now owns 90,378 shares of the offshore drilling services provider’s stock valued at $373,000 after acquiring an additional 2,500 shares during the last quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp increased its position in shares of Transocean by 9.0% during the third quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 35,604 shares of the offshore drilling services provider’s stock worth $114,000 after purchasing an additional 2,932 shares in the last quarter. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Transocean by 3.5% in the 3rd quarter. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. now owns 100,634 shares of the offshore drilling services provider’s stock valued at $314,000 after purchasing an additional 3,367 shares during the last quarter. Moors & Cabot Inc. boosted its position in shares of Transocean by 14.7% in the 2nd quarter. Moors & Cabot Inc. now owns 27,350 shares of the offshore drilling services provider’s stock valued at $71,000 after purchasing an additional 3,500 shares during the period. Finally, Townsend & Associates Inc increased its position in Transocean by 16.0% during the fourth quarter. Townsend & Associates Inc now owns 29,000 shares of the offshore drilling services provider’s stock worth $126,000 after buying an additional 4,000 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 67.73% of the company’s stock.

Key Headlines Impacting Transocean

Here are the key news stories impacting Transocean this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Transformative acquisition announced — Transocean agreed to buy Valaris in an all‑stock transaction (~$5.8B), creating a much larger offshore drilling leader with scale, an expanded fleet and meaningful backlog and cost‑saving opportunities that improve cash‑flow visibility and leverage metrics. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: New firm backlog: ~$184M in Norway contract fixtures for two harsh‑environment semisubmersibles (Encourage extension + Enabler options) — adds near‑term revenue visibility and extends rig utilization into 2027. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Bullish derivatives flow — unusually large call buying (≈69,880 calls, ~+85% vs. average) suggests speculative or hedged bullish positioning that can amplify intraday upside and trading volume.
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst upward momentum — BTIG raised its price target to $10, supporting higher expectations for upside from the deal and operations. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: M&A investor materials and call transcript available — management has held calls/transcripts explaining rationale and synergies; useful for investors doing due diligence but not an immediate catalyst by itself. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Earnings/operational outlook — previews (Zacks) expect revenue growth but higher operating & maintenance costs; watch Q4 results and guidance for confirmation. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Analyst downgrade — Fearnley Fonds cut RIG from “strong‑buy” to “hold,” which may temper some buy‑side enthusiasm and limit near‑term upside. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Legal/transaction scrutiny — a class‑action investigation and third‑party reviews of the Valaris deal process have been announced, introducing regulatory/legal risk and potential distraction or costs. Article Title Article Title

Transocean Company Profile

Transocean Ltd. is a leading international provider of offshore contract drilling services for the oil and gas industry. The company specializes in the operation of mobile drilling units, including ultra-deepwater drillships, semisubmersible rigs and high-specification jackup rigs. Transocean’s fleet is designed to meet complex drilling requirements, from ultra-deepwater well construction to shelf exploration and development projects.

The company’s core services encompass the full spectrum of offshore drilling operations, including project and engineering management, marine operations, drilling supervision, and maintenance support.