Peabody Energy (NYSE:BTU) Announces Earnings Results

Peabody Energy (NYSE:BTU) announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday. The coal producer reported ($0.27) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.05) by ($0.22), FiscalAI reports. Peabody Energy had a negative net margin of 4.56% and a negative return on equity of 5.22%. The business had revenue of $1.10 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.03 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted ($0.58) EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.3% compared to the same quarter last year.

Here are the key takeaways from Peabody Energy’s conference call:

• Centurion’s ramp-up remains delayed. Complex faulting limited October production to just over 45,000 tons, prompting a fourth-quarter sales outlook of 300,000–500,000 tons and a 600,000-ton reduction to full-year metallurgical volume guidance; management says its long-term capacity outlook is unchanged.
• Seaborne thermal performance and markets strengthened. The segment’s adjusted EBITDA rose 60% year over year, and Peabody raised full-year export volume guidance by 200,000 tons, citing higher Wambo production and stronger Newcastle pricing.
• Weak U.S. coal burn weighed on thermal volumes. Peabody lowered full-year Powder River Basin volume guidance by 7.5 million tons and other U.S. thermal guidance by 200,000 tons, while noting that near-term demand depends on weather, gas prices, and renewable generation.
• Adjusted EBITDA improved, and liquidity remained substantial. Third-quarter adjusted EBITDA was $97.5 million, up from the second quarter, and Peabody ended the period with $434 million in cash and $887 million in liquidity; it also reported $192 million returned to shareholders year to date through September.

Peabody Energy Stock Down 18.8%

Shares of NYSE BTU traded down $3.89 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $16.77. The stock had a trading volume of 4,844,736 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,991,228. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $25.54 and a two-hundred day moving average of $28.04. The company has a market capitalization of $2.04 billion, a PE ratio of -11.11 and a beta of 0.46. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10, a current ratio of 2.01 and a quick ratio of 1.46. Peabody Energy has a 12 month low of $15.97 and a 12 month high of $41.14.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have recently commented on BTU. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Peabody Energy from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 27th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Peabody Energy from a “sell (d)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a research report on Friday, October 2nd. B. Riley Financial upgraded Peabody Energy from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $29.00 to $30.00 in a research note on Monday, October 26th. Benchmark cut their price target on Peabody Energy from $40.00 to $36.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. Finally, UBS Group decreased their price objective on Peabody Energy from $27.00 to $26.50 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, August 4th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Peabody Energy presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $34.12.

About Peabody Energy

Peabody Energy Corp. is a global coal producer and supplier of energy and industrial fuels. The company mines, processes and markets thermal coal, which is primarily used for electricity generation, and metallurgical coal, which is used in steelmaking. Peabody also provides coal-trading and logistics services and works with customers to transport products to domestic and international markets.

Peabody operates mines in the United States and Australia, serving electric utilities, steel producers and other industrial customers.