GrafTech International (NYSE:EAF) Cut to “Hold” at Zacks Research

Zacks Research cut shares of GrafTech International (NYSE:EAF) from a strong-buy rating to a hold rating in a report issued on Thursday,Zacks.com reports.

Several other equities analysts have also issued reports on EAF. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on GrafTech International from $1.00 to $1.50 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 29th. UBS Group reduced their price objective on GrafTech International from $1.50 to $0.80 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, May 13th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $1.63.

GrafTech International Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE EAF opened at $0.9850 on Thursday. GrafTech International has a 52 week low of $0.55 and a 52 week high of $2.53. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $1.18 and a 200 day simple moving average of $1.03. The stock has a market cap of $254.28 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -1.20 and a beta of 1.63.

GrafTech International shares are scheduled to reverse split on Friday, August 29th. The 1-10 reverse split was announced on Monday, August 18th. The number of shares owned by shareholders will be adjusted after the market closes on Thursday, August 28th.

GrafTech International (NYSE:EAF) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, July 25th. The company reported ($0.16) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.12) by ($0.04). The firm had revenue of $131.84 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $130.44 million. On average, analysts predict that GrafTech International will post -0.57 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On GrafTech International

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Yacktman Asset Management LP grew its position in shares of GrafTech International by 1.2% in the 2nd quarter. Yacktman Asset Management LP now owns 10,826,186 shares of the company’s stock valued at $10,530,000 after buying an additional 127,490 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its position in shares of GrafTech International by 57.2% in the 2nd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 7,131,013 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,936,000 after buying an additional 2,594,562 shares during the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. grew its position in shares of GrafTech International by 24.6% in the 4th quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 5,981,468 shares of the company’s stock valued at $10,348,000 after buying an additional 1,182,040 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its position in shares of GrafTech International by 34.3% in the 1st quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 4,619,905 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,040,000 after buying an additional 1,179,988 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Prescott Group Capital Management L.L.C. grew its position in shares of GrafTech International by 92.3% in the 2nd quarter. Prescott Group Capital Management L.L.C. now owns 3,151,686 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,065,000 after buying an additional 1,512,436 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 92.83% of the company’s stock.

About GrafTech International

GrafTech International Ltd. research, develops, manufactures, and sells graphite and carbon-based solutions worldwide. The company offers graphite electrodes to produce electric arc furnace steel and other ferrous and non-ferrous metals; and petroleum needle coke, a crystalline form of carbon used in the production of graphite electrodes and synthetic graphite.