Shares of GrafTech International (NYSE: EAF), a producer of graphite materials, fell more than 10% on Thursday following the company's quarterly earnings announcement. The results actually came in ahead of expectations, but investors appear more focused on GrafTech's commentary about issues with some key customers.
Before markets opened Thursday, GrafTech reported fourth-quarter earnings of $0.61 per share on revenue of $414.61 million, beating expectations for $0.55 per share in earnings on sales of $402 million. The results, as expected, were down year over year due to reduced production levels of crude steel. Production volume in the quarter totaled 41,000 metric tons, down from 51,000 metric tons in the last three months of 2018.
GRAFTECH'S GRAPHITE ELECTRODES ARE USED IN THE PRODUCTION OF STEEL. IMAGE SOURCE: GETTY IMAGES.