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New York • Shares of Arch Coal Inc. rose the most in more than two months Monday after the coal-mining company reporting an increase in cash on hand and profit that beat analysts' estimates.
The shares were up 4 percent to $1.56 at 9:36 a.m. in New York. Excluding one-time items, third-quarter earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization were $70 million to $74 million, the St. Louis-based company said. Arch was expected to earn $68.4 million, the average of 12 analysts' estimates compiled by Bloomberg.
The company also said it had $1.05 billion of cash and short-term investments as of Sept. 30, almost $60 million more than at the end of the preceding quarter.
Arch had a long-time presence in Utah as owner of Canyon Fuel Co., which operated three mines in the central coal belt, including the state's largest mine, Sufco.
But it sold those interests in June 2013 to Bowie Resources for $435 million as it moved to cut costs in a declining coal market.
Arch, which reports its full quarterly results on Oct. 28, said it was publishing Monday's preliminary earnings because of "recent unprecedented market conditions." The company produces coal for power stations and steelmakers, and prices of both types have slumped, spurring some U.S. producers to idle or close mines.
Arch's shares have plunged 65 percent in 2014 and closed Oct. 10 at their lowest in at least 17 years, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.