Investing to Wealth

The coal sector caught fire today helped in part by strong first-quarter earnings from Patriot Coal (PCX). The company reported profits of $0.41 per share - $0.95 better than consensus expectations of a $0.54-per-share loss. Revenues jumped 86% year-over-year to $528.9 million whereas analysts were expecting slightly better revenues of $539 million. According to Briefing.com  on the conference call Patriot admitted the coal market was very depressed. It expects a slow recovery beginning at the end of 2009 led by electricity and the steel market. Executives also pointed to the Obama administration's so-called "right" balance of low-cost energy which will ultimately require more ...