This column is for investors willing to take more risk and potentially receive more reward.  The stocks mentioned in this column are not recommended to buy or sell.  They're brought to your attention so you can investigate them further to determine if they fit your risk profile.  Most of the stocks will have less than $1 billion of market capitalization, have more volatility than other stocks, and oftentimes no earnings.  And some will have tremendous stories.

October 23, 2008 - Graftech International, Ltd. (GTI-NYSE) develops and manufactures graphite and carbon material science-based solutions. It operates in three segments: Graphite Electrodes, Advanced Graphite Materials, and Other Businesses. The Graphite Electrodes segment manufactures graphite electrodes and related services. Its electrodes are used as components of the conductive power systems in electric arc furnace steel production, as well as in other ferrous and non-ferrous melting applications, including steel refining, titanium dioxide production, and chemical processing.

The Other Businesses segment manufactures natural graphite products, including advanced flexible graphite and flexible graphite. It offers electronic thermal management solutions which are used in electronics, power generation, automotive, petrochemical, and transportation industries. This segment also manufactures carbon, semi-graphitic, and graphite refractory bricks that are used in blast furnace and submerged arc furnaces for applications, including cooling courses in the hearth bottoms, backup linings in hearth walls, and lintels over copper cooling plates. The company sells its products through direct sales force, direct employees, independent sales representatives, and distributors in North America, South America, Africa, Europe, and Asia. GrafTechInternational was founded in 1886 and is headquartered in Parma, Ohio.

Any stock that goes from $28 to $7 in a matter of months is an eye-catcher. That's what GTI did. While the market as a whole has done very poorly, GTI has suffered greatly. Earnings for the third quarter will be announced on November 4, and 6 analysts following the company show a consensus estimate of 45 cents a share, well above the 32 cents last year. For the fourth and final quarter, they see 49 cents a share, beating last year's same quarter of 38 cents. For the full year, consensus is for $1.96 and for next year, $2.55. The stock is selling for $7.42 as this is written.

Here's another interesting fact: the company recently redeemed $20 million of its outstanding 10% Senior notes due in 2012, financed by the cash flow from operating and financing activities. That will reduce interest costs helping profit margins going forward. Another recent event: FMR, also known as Fidelity Management, filed with the SEC that it now owns 4,258,971 shares (after a recent purchase) or 3.563% of the company. There are 119,053,417 shares outstanding.

But wait, there's more: on September 5, Jefferies upgraded GTI to a Buy rating, pushing the stock to $18...continue to page 2