By Elias Schisgall

Shares of GrafTech dropped after the company widened its loss in the fourth quarter, citing challenging pricing levels and flat global steel production.

Shares were down 24% at $11.99 in pre-market trading after closing Thursday at $15.69. At close, the stock was up 5.3% over the past year.

The maker of graphite electrode products, an input into steel production, on Friday posted a loss of $65.1 million, or $2.50 a share, compared with a loss of $49.5 million, or $1.92 a share, a year earlier.

Stripping out certain one-time items, the company posted a loss of $2.45 a share.

Net sales fell 13% to $116.5 million, down from $134.2 million a year prior. Sales volume was flat year-over-year, the company said.

The company said 2025 global steel production, excluding China, was roughly flat, as Chinese steel exports and uncertainty around tariffs and global trade weighed on production levels. The company is also facing headwinds from a difficult pricing environment, it said.

"While we are encouraged by our ongoing strong volume performance, industry-wide pricing levels remain unsustainably low," the company said. "Challenging pricing dynamics, most notably aggressive competitor pricing behavior, increased further during the fourth quarter of 2026, and we expect that pressure to continue into 2026.

Chief Executive Timothy Flanagan said trends in the steel industry are beginning to improve in 2026. The company is planning for a modest recovery in global steel demand and near-term steel production increases in the U.S.

It is projecting sales volume growing between 5% and 10% in 2026, with an expected 10% increase in the first quarter.

Write to Elias Schisgall at elias.schisgall@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

February 06, 2026 08:45 ET (13:45 GMT)

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