Insider Buying: GrafTech International Ltd. (NYSE:EAF) Major Shareholder Acquires $295,482.50 in Stock

GrafTech International Ltd. (NYSE:EAF) major shareholder Colonial House Capital Ltd purchased 163,250 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 6th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $1.81 per share, for a total transaction of $295,482.50. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 30,411,113 shares in the company, valued at approximately $55,044,114.53. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Major shareholders that own more than 10% of a company’s stock are required to disclose their transactions with the SEC.

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

• On Friday, May 3rd, Colonial House Capital Ltd acquired 533,009 shares of GrafTech International stock. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $1.77 per share, with a total value of $943,425.93.
• On Friday, April 26th, Colonial House Capital Ltd bought 179,279 shares of GrafTech International stock. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $1.48 per share, for a total transaction of $265,332.92.
• On Tuesday, April 16th, Colonial House Capital Ltd purchased 2,303,599 shares of GrafTech International stock. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $1.78 per share, with a total value of $4,100,406.22.

GrafTech International Price Performance

Shares of EAF opened at $1.77 on Friday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $1.61 and a two-hundred day moving average of $1.93. The company has a quick ratio of 1.91, a current ratio of 3.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 24.74. GrafTech International Ltd. has a twelve month low of $1.18 and a twelve month high of $5.32. The company has a market cap of $455.19 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -1.62 and a beta of 1.05.

GrafTech International (NYSE:EAF) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, April 26th. The company reported ($0.10) EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $125.73 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted ($0.02) EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts predict that GrafTech International Ltd. will post -0.43 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On GrafTech International

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in EAF. CWM LLC raised its position in shares of GrafTech International by 211.9% in the 4th 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 last quarter. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC acquired a new stake in shares of GrafTech International during the third quarter worth $44,000. Terril Brothers Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of GrafTech International during the fourth quarter valued at $44,000. Welch Group LLC increased its position in shares of GrafTech International by 71.2% in the 1st quarter. Welch Group LLC now owns 34,243 shares of the company’s stock valued at $47,000 after acquiring an additional 14,243 shares during the period. Finally, Oak Thistle LLC purchased a new position in GrafTech International in the 4th quarter worth $48,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.83% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

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