GrafTech International (NYSE:EAF) Shares Up 2.6% – Here’s What Happened

GrafTech International Ltd. (NYSE:EAF)’s stock price traded up 2.6% during mid-day trading on Friday . The company traded as high as $6.09 and last traded at $5.9110. 206,136 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 47% from the average session volume of 387,002 shares. The stock had previously closed at $5.76.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have commented on EAF shares. Royal Bank Of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and set a $10.00 target price on shares of GrafTech International in a research note on Tuesday, May 5th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of GrafTech International from a “strong sell” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Saturday, May 9th. BMO Capital Markets raised their price objective on shares of GrafTech International from $6.00 to $8.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Monday, May 4th. Weiss Ratings cut shares of GrafTech International from a “sell (d-)” rating to a “sell (e+)” rating in a research note on Monday, June 29th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reaffirmed an “underweight” rating on shares of GrafTech International in a report on Tuesday, April 14th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, GrafTech International presently has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and a consensus price target of $10.67.

GrafTech International Price Performance

The stock has a market cap of $153.98 million, a P/E ratio of -0.68 and a beta of 1.84. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $8.15 and its two-hundred day moving average is $9.71.

GrafTech International (NYSE:EAF) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, May 1st. The company reported ($2.05) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($1.25) by ($0.80). The business had revenue of $125.10 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $120.60 million. On average, analysts anticipate that GrafTech International Ltd. will post -6.18 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On GrafTech International

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Ameriprise Financial Inc. boosted its stake in GrafTech International by 10.7% during the second quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 5,673,093 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,518,000 after buying an additional 546,177 shares during the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP raised its holdings in shares of GrafTech International by 132.8% during the 2nd quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 2,782,531 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,699,000 after acquiring an additional 1,587,052 shares in the last quarter. Jane Street Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of GrafTech International by 357.6% during the 2nd quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 1,678,655 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,633,000 after acquiring an additional 1,311,797 shares in the last quarter. Sender Co & Partners Inc. boosted its position in shares of GrafTech International by 169.2% during the 2nd quarter. Sender Co & Partners Inc. now owns 1,286,455 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,251,000 after acquiring an additional 808,615 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of GrafTech International by 26.7% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,122,722 shares of the company’s stock valued at $17,413,000 after acquiring an additional 236,738 shares during the last quarter. 92.83% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

GrafTech International Company Profile

GrafTech International (NYSE: EAF) is a leading global manufacturer of graphite electrodes and other specialty graphite products used primarily in electric arc furnaces (EAFs) for steel production. The company’s core offerings include ultrahigh-power, high-power and regular power electrodes, along with related accessories such as graphite shapes and heterogeneous carbon materials. These products play a critical role in steelmaking by conducting the high electrical currents required to melt scrap steel efficiently and with reduced environmental impact compared to traditional blast furnace methods.

With a manufacturing footprint spanning North America, Europe and Asia, GrafTech serves steel producers and foundries worldwide.