GrafTech International Ltd. (NYSE:EAF) Short Interest Update

GrafTech International Ltd. (NYSE:EAF) was the recipient of a significant growth in short interest in June. As of June 30th, there was short interest totaling 999,086 shares, a growth of 76.5% from the June 15th total of 566,195 shares. Approximately 3.9% of the company’s stock are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 559,802 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 1.8 days.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On GrafTech International

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of EAF. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of GrafTech International by 5,083.2% during the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 635,663 shares of the company’s stock worth $556,000 after acquiring an additional 623,399 shares during the period. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership acquired a new stake in GrafTech International in the second quarter valued at about $182,000. Marshall Wace LLP boosted its holdings in GrafTech International by 132.8% in the 2nd quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 2,782,531 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,699,000 after purchasing an additional 1,587,052 shares in the last quarter. Jump Financial LLC purchased a new stake in GrafTech International in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $42,000. Finally, Jane Street Group LLC increased its position in 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 purchasing an additional 1,311,797 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.83% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

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

GrafTech International Trading Down 6.2%

Shares of NYSE EAF traded down $0.46 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $6.93. The stock had a trading volume of 419,320 shares, compared to its average volume of 405,724. The firm has a market cap of $180.63 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -0.80 and a beta of 1.84. GrafTech International has a fifty-two week low of $4.92 and a fifty-two week high of $20.32. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $7.92 and a 200-day moving average of $9.37.

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

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.