Billionaire investor Carl Icahn cut his stake in rig provider Transocean by more than two-thirds "for tax planning purposes."

The move comes a week after the activist investor trimmed his stake in US natural gas producer Chesapeake Energy, indicating that he was reducing his exposure to oil-exposed companies.

Icahn, who accumulated a nearly 6% stake in Transocean in November 2013, reduced it to 1.5%,