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Arch Coal (ARCH) Stock Sinks As Market Gains: What You Should Know

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Arch Coal (ARCH - Free Report) closed the most recent trading day at $90.82, moving -1.79% from the previous trading session. This change lagged the S&P 500's daily gain of 0.5%. Elsewhere, the Dow gained 0.54%, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq added 0.76%.

Prior to today's trading, shares of the coal producer had gained 3.47% over the past month. This has outpaced the Basic Materials sector's gain of 2.62% and the S&P 500's gain of 2.53% in that time.

ARCH will be looking to display strength as it nears its next earnings release. On that day, ARCH is projected to report earnings of $2.71 per share, which would represent a year-over-year decline of 8.14%. Our most recent consensus estimate is calling for quarterly revenue of $553.50 million, down 3.79% from the year-ago period.

Looking at the full year, our Zacks Consensus Estimates suggest analysts are expecting earnings of $14.35 per share and revenue of $2.28 billion. These totals would mark changes of -5.28% and -6.93%, respectively, from last year.

Investors should also note any recent changes to analyst estimates for ARCH. These revisions typically reflect the latest short-term business trends, which can change frequently. As a result, we can interpret positive estimate revisions as a good sign for the company's business outlook.

Our research shows that these estimate changes are directly correlated with near-term stock prices. To benefit from this, we have developed the Zacks Rank, a proprietary model which takes these estimate changes into account and provides an actionable rating system.

The Zacks Rank system, which ranges from #1 (Strong Buy) to #5 (Strong Sell), has an impressive outside-audited track record of outperformance, with #1 stocks generating an average annual return of +25% since 1988. Over the past month, the Zacks Consensus EPS estimate has moved 5.66% higher. ARCH is currently a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).

Investors should also note ARCH's current valuation metrics, including its Forward P/E ratio of 6.44. Its industry sports an average Forward P/E of 12.38, so we one might conclude that ARCH is trading at a discount comparatively.

The Mining - Miscellaneous industry is part of the Basic Materials sector. This group has a Zacks Industry Rank of 70, putting it in the top 28% of all 250+ industries.

The Zacks Industry Rank gauges the strength of our industry groups by measuring the average Zacks Rank of the individual stocks within the groups. Our research shows that the top 50% rated industries outperform the bottom half by a factor of 2 to 1.

To follow ARCH in the coming trading sessions, be sure to utilize Zacks.com.


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