GrafTech International Ltd. (NYSE:EAF) Major Shareholder Buys $265,332.92 in Stock

GrafTech International Ltd. (NYSE:EAF) major shareholder Colonial House Capital Ltd acquired 179,279 shares of GrafTech International stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, April 26th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $1.48 per share, with a total value of $265,332.92. Following the completion of the purchase, the insider now owns 29,714,854 shares in the company, valued at approximately $43,977,983.92. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Large shareholders that own 10% or more of a company’s shares are required to disclose their transactions with the SEC.

Colonial House Capital Ltd also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Tuesday, April 16th, Colonial House Capital Ltd bought 2,303,599 shares of GrafTech International stock. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $1.78 per share, for a total transaction of $4,100,406.22.

GrafTech International Stock Performance

NYSE:EAF opened at $1.67 on Thursday. The company’s 50-day moving average is $1.58 and its two-hundred day moving average is $1.99. The firm has a market capitalization of $429.47 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -1.53 and a beta of 1.14. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 24.74, a current ratio of 3.73 and a quick ratio of 1.81. GrafTech International Ltd. has a 1-year low of $1.18 and a 1-year high of $5.32.

GrafTech International (NYSE:EAF) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, April 26th. The company reported ($0.10) EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.18) by $0.08. GrafTech International had a negative return on equity of 66.36% and a negative net margin of 45.08%. The firm had revenue of $136.80 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $125.73 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted ($0.02) earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 1.4% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts forecast that GrafTech International Ltd. will post -0.52 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Trading of GrafTech International

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. boosted its stake in GrafTech International by 3.5% during the third quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 109,775 shares of the company’s stock worth $420,000 after buying an additional 3,665 shares during the period. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of GrafTech International by 39.2% in the 3rd quarter. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. now owns 14,726 shares of the company’s stock worth $56,000 after acquiring an additional 4,147 shares during the last quarter. Swiss National Bank boosted its position in shares of GrafTech International by 1.0% during the 3rd quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 451,500 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,729,000 after purchasing an additional 4,400 shares during the period. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC increased its holdings in GrafTech International by 21.8% in the 3rd quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 30,645 shares of the company’s stock valued at $117,000 after purchasing an additional 5,488 shares during the last quarter. Finally, CWM LLC raised its position in GrafTech International by 211.9% in the fourth quarter. CWM LLC now owns 14,000 shares of the company’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 9,511 shares during the period. 92.83% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Citigroup reduced their target price on shares of GrafTech International from $4.00 to $2.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 10th. BMO Capital Markets decreased their target price on shares of GrafTech International from $2.00 to $1.50 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, February 15th. UBS Group assumed coverage on GrafTech International in a report on Tuesday, January 16th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $2.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada cut their price target on GrafTech International from $3.00 to $2.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 16th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $1.88.

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.