Virtu Financial LLC Lowers Position in GrafTech International Ltd. (NYSE:EAF)

Virtu Financial LLC reduced its position in shares of GrafTech International Ltd. (NYSE:EAF) by 51.7% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 84,942 shares of the company’s stock after selling 90,760 shares during the period. Virtu Financial LLC’s holdings in GrafTech International were worth $147,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in EAF. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of GrafTech International by 1.2% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 5,053,060 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,671,000 after buying an additional 59,424 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its holdings in GrafTech International by 81.0% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 4,536,232 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,623,000 after acquiring an additional 2,029,350 shares during the period. William Blair Investment Management LLC boosted its position in shares of GrafTech International by 2.1% during the 4th quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC now owns 4,461,906 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,719,000 after purchasing an additional 93,722 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its holdings in shares of GrafTech International by 475.6% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 2,458,829 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,246,000 after purchasing an additional 2,031,652 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Jane Street Group LLC increased its holdings in shares of GrafTech International by 13.6% in the 3rd quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 885,147 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,168,000 after purchasing an additional 106,091 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.83% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently commented on the stock. Citigroup boosted their price objective on shares of GrafTech International from $1.00 to $2.20 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 3rd. Royal Bank of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and set a $2.00 price target on shares of GrafTech International in a research note on Monday, February 10th. BMO Capital Markets dropped their price objective on GrafTech International from $2.00 to $1.50 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded GrafTech International from an “underweight” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, December 6th.

Insider Activity

In other news, CFO Rory F. O’donnell bought 50,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 13th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $1.04 per share, with a total value of $52,000.00. Following the purchase, the chief financial officer now owns 100,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $104,000. This trade represents a 100.00 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Company insiders own 0.60% of the company’s stock.

GrafTech International Stock Down 5.0 %

Shares of NYSE EAF opened at $0.95 on Friday. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $1.23 and its two-hundred day moving average is $1.53. The company has a market capitalization of $244.40 million, a PE ratio of -1.86 and a beta of 0.92. GrafTech International Ltd. has a 12-month low of $0.52 and a 12-month high of $2.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 57.38, a current ratio of 4.55 and a quick ratio of 1.98.

GrafTech International (NYSE:EAF) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The company reported ($0.13) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.14) by $0.01. GrafTech International had a negative return on equity of 709.85% and a negative net margin of 24.34%. During the same period last year, the company posted ($0.27) EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that GrafTech International Ltd. will post -0.57 EPS for the current fiscal year.

GrafTech International Company Profile

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.