GrafTech International Ltd. $EAF Shares Sold by Prescott Group Capital Management L.L.C.

Key Points

• Prescott Group cut its GrafTech stake by 56.1% in the third quarter, selling 120,568 shares; it retained 94,499 shares, valued at about $782,000.
• Analyst sentiment remains cautious: four analysts rate the stock Hold and two rate it Sell, with a consensus rating of “Reduce” and a $10 price target.
• GrafTech reported a quarterly loss of $1.21 per share, but beat analysts’ loss estimate of $1.38; revenue of $140.16 million also exceeded expectations.

Prescott Group Capital Management L.L.C. reduced its position in GrafTech International Ltd. (NYSE:EAF - Free Report) by 56.1% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 94,499 shares of the company's stock after selling 120,568 shares during the period. Prescott Group Capital Management L.L.C. owned about 0.35% of GrafTech International worth $782,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Engineers Gate Manager LP acquired a new position in shares of GrafTech International during the 2nd quarter worth $190,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp acquired a new stake in GrafTech International in the 2nd quarter valued at about $251,000. Ramsey Quantitative Systems acquired a new stake in GrafTech International in the 2nd quarter valued at about $69,000. Bank of America Corp DE increased its holdings in GrafTech International by 4.5% during the 1st quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 94,360 shares of the company's stock valued at $640,000 after acquiring an additional 4,067 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Renaissance Technologies LLC purchased a new position in GrafTech International during the 1st quarter valued at about $823,000. 92.83% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have issued reports on EAF shares. Wall Street Zen raised shares of GrafTech International from a "strong sell" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Saturday. Weiss Ratings raised shares of GrafTech International from a "sell (e+)" rating to a "sell (d-)" rating in a research note on Thursday, September 24th. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price objective on shares of GrafTech International from $7.00 to $8.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Thursday, October 15th. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded GrafTech International from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, September 14th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Reduce" and a consensus target price of $10.00.

GrafTech International Price Performance

Shares of EAF stock opened at $11.64 on Wednesday. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $8.54 and a 200 day moving average price of $8.42. GrafTech International Ltd. has a twelve month low of $4.92 and a twelve month high of $19.72.

GrafTech International (NYSE:EAF - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, October 23rd. The company reported ($1.21) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($1.38) by $0.17. The firm had revenue of $140.16 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $126.73 million. Equities analysts predict that GrafTech International Ltd. will post -5.87 earnings per share for the current year.

About GrafTech International

GrafTech International Ltd. NYSE: EAF manufactures graphite electrodes and related products used primarily in electric arc furnace steelmaking. Its products conduct electricity and generate the intense heat required to melt steel scrap and other metallic materials, making them important consumables for steel producers.

The company's product portfolio includes ultra-high-power, high-power and regular-power graphite electrodes, as well as specialty graphite products for industrial applications.

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