Finance and Economic

Shares of rig operator Transocean Ltd. rose more than 10 percent Friday after analysts downplayed the company’s liability in the Gulf oil spill.

As Congress continues its investigation of the disaster, analysts say that Transocean’s potential liability appears to be declining. The rise in shares helps recover at least some losses after Transocean’s stock began its slide from about $90 per share just before the explosion of the April 20 Deepwater Horizon rig, which Transocean operated for BP.

Shares of Transocean (NYSE: RIG) closed Friday at $54.61, up $5.18 from its previous close.

The company, which has its corporate headquarters in Switzerland but maintains a significant presence in Houston, is faring better than other firms involved in the Gulf oil spill.

Both BP and Anadarko Petroleum Corp. suffered downgrades from rating agencies this week.

BP (NYSE: BP) took a downgrade by Moody’s Friday when the agency lowered the company’s rating from A2 to Aa2 on fears of the escalating cleanup and liability costs. That’s the third downgrade by a rating agency this week for BP.

Anadarko (NYSE: APC), which holds a 25 percent stake in the Macondo well where the Deepwater Horizon exploded, was downgraded by Fitch to “negative” from “stable” earlier this week after the agency estimated the spill could cost Anadarko up to $6 billion.

The Houston Business Journal is providing continuous coverage of the Gulf oil spill.

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