UPDATE: Stifel Reiterates On Cloud Peak Energy Inc On U.S. Coal Weakness

In a report published Tuesday, Stifel analyst Paul Forward reiterated a Buy rating on

, but lowered the price target from $22.00 to $20.00. In the report, Stifel noted, “We attribute the weakness in U.S. coal to several factors: persistently low international pricing for both thermal and metallurgical coal; a strong rebuild in depleted natural gas storage levels from April to September, aided by a mild U.S. summer; congestion on U.S. railroads since late 2013 that negatively impacted coal shipment volumes, and high debt levels among several U.S. coal producers. Following the recent selloff in coal names, Cloud Peak stands out to U.S. as interesting at these levels, as it operates three of the top six U.S. coal mines and totaled 8.4% of the U.S. coal supply in 2Q14. At a market cap of $770 million and an enterprise value of $1.1 billion, Cloud Peak is a heavyweight energy producer with a flyweight valuation, in our view.” Cloud Peak Energy Inc closed on Monday at $12.64.