Coal news and updates

Arch posts narrower quarterly loss amid coal price slump

Arch Coal Inc (ACI) reported a narrower third-quarter loss and better-than-expected sales figures as it continues to cut costs in the face of slumping prices for the power plant and steelmaking fuel.

The net loss narrowed to $97.2 million, or 46 cents a share, from $128.4 million, or 61 cents, a year earlier, the St. Louis-based company said in statement today. Quarterly sales beat estimates as Arch increased output from western mines because of improved rail service.

Arch hasn’t turned a quarterly adjusted profit since 2011 amid coal’s worst downturn in decades. Faced with a six-year low for the price of metallurgical coal, Arch idled its Cumberland River complex in Central Appalachia in July. There’s a global surplus of the steelmaking ingredient after a slowdown in Chinese demand.

“We are further reducing our expectations for corporate administrative expense and capital spending in 2014, and expect to end the year with approximately $1 billion in cash and short-term investments,” John T. Drexler, Arch’s chief financial officer, said in the statement. “This strong liquidity position, coupled with no debt maturities until mid-2018, provides Arch with the financial flexibility needed to navigate current coal market conditions.”
‘No Surprises’

Other coal producers, including James River Coal Co. and Patriot Coal Corp., have filed for bankruptcy in the past two years as North American natural gas output soared, causing prices to drop to 12-year lows. Coupled with more stringent pollution measures, utilities are burning less coal to generate electricity.

The company reported $742.2 million in revenue, more than the $722.9 million average estimate and less than the $791.3 million it made during the same period last year.

“Overall, we see no surprises in the print, the company continues to hoard liquidity and aggressively cut costs,” Daniel Scott, a New York-based analyst for Cowen & Co., wrote in a note to clients today.

Arch climbed 7.8 percent to $1.93 at the close in New York. The shares have declined 57 percent this year.

Excluding one-time items, the loss was 45 cents a share, exceeding the 41-cent average of 18 analysts’ estimates compiled by Bloomberg.

Source: Bloomberg