A word about natty with regard to US domestic thermal #coal.
1) Switching occurs at ~$3.50...may get that in back half of the year, but not close yet.
2) Producers are already sold out for 2023, so natty px doesn't have a big impact on '23 bottom line.
Int'l matters more 1/x
Re: TTF, prices roughly back where they were post-Dec '21 spike, and the entire curve has consolidated here. If EU industrial activity accelerates, that's constructive for both met and thermal #coal. 2/x
ARA (EU-delivered) thermal #coal prices already mimicking TTF consolidation. While we aren't getting another big spike to $300+ we are def not headed to $100 immediately with TTF at $60-80...think we're at $180-200 for most of winter. 3/x
Richard's Bay (South Africa) thermal #coal prices exact same situation as ARA/EU...consolidating and rangebound depending on weather. 4/x
But #Newcastle thermal #Coal remains king, and long term curve reflecting the historically normal ~15-20% premium over ARA.
Story is the same here, but with one big caveat - 50% of supply can be adjusted by $GLEN to keep prices high.
Until global gas collapses fr, we just here.
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Let's start with the🐐 $AMR, which hit the first level of interest today at $350/sh.
Earnings coming up and MSHA data looked decent, but Street estimates have caught up with #CoalTwitter so any beat/miss likely in tight range.
If it gets to $300 or $265, I'll need a truck.2/x
The bois in Alabama $HCC have a much simpler price structure. Activity all huddled around $5 increments at $60/$55/$50...below that is a no-brainer as it puts us down into last summer's range. 3/x
OK let's talk $BTU. First off, here's where my model was going into earnings...pretty darn close!
Expected a beat on EBITDA and a miss on net income relative to estimates, which we got.
Takeaway here is that estimates aren't wildly off anymore, so no edge for #CoalTwitter😭 1/
Seaborne thermal not great, but that's going to happen when average prices are down 10-20% Q/Q and product mix shits toward Wilpinjong 5500.
Costs looking VERY GOOD though...which is what we want to see when prices don't cooperate. 2/x
Seaborne met disappointing with regard to production, but prices about where I pegged them (had ~$170).
Again, though, costs look VERY GOOD...about 6-7% below my estimate for the quarter. Part of that is price-related but it's not as big as you think, per my table below. 3/x
After two solid weeks of modeling $BTU using every kind of approach imaginable, I'm comfortable saying that b/c their mines have vastly different #coal qualities, management does not provide enough information for analysts to get a confident read on projecting earnings.
1/x
Taken straight from guidance, using a combination of committed prices and average prices since 2/14 (when 10-k was released) for PLV met/NEWC/API5 to cover unpriced tons, I get around $325M in FCF...a little light but in line with other comentary I've seen.
2/x
If I use mine-level production, prices (tied back to guidance as best as we can), direct costs, and strip out royalties (which are included in mine costs), I get to a slightly lower number.
While I agree that $50 might not hold for $CEIX in the short term, I think the portrayal here is at best histrionic.
I don't have wild expectations for 2023, but what is not mentioned here is that for a low-cost operator like CONSOL, it doesn't really take much to do well. 1/n
While there is a *reference* to fundamentals, there is no analysis, only platitudes - "Not like 2022 dips. Gas macro different. The equity started to price that in and will price it in blah blah"
Truth is that EU outbid ME and India over past 2 yrs and that can revert now. 2/n
The comment about cash on balance sheet and debt that exceeds cash on balance sheet is pretty misguided.
The reason there isn't as much cash is because thermal hadn't done well, and $CEIX paid down almost 50% of debt over the past two years rather than build cash. 3/n
OK, talked about this a little last month, and outlined some thoughts on a Spaces last night, but it's time to revisit the "China will save commodities" thesis.
I'll use the #steel & #coal space because that's what I know best, but there are analogs to other industries too...1/x
For better or worse, I've always relied on China credit impulse to give me a sense of where we are in the #steel cycle...3 out of the past four cycles, prices peaked 12-24 months after a peak in credit.
Except for 2013/14...2/x
The reason? China was dumping steel into the export market. That happened to be the year I moved from the coal team to steel at WoodMac, and it was just about all clients were talking about...so it kind of left an imprint.
Well guess what? Exports at highest level since then 3/x
Coking #coal prices back to ~$250 for spot, and over $300 for peak restocking season.
ARA (EU-delivered) thermal #coal back over $400/t after nearly hitting $300 back at the beginning of the month.
Both of those coal bottoms within a day or two of a short term bottom in oil prices.
PSA: coal isn't oil.
You know what's NOT doing so great (but still crazy good relative to history) is low-rank Indonesian thermal #coal, down more than 30% off of Mar/Apr peak.