Peabody reports 2Q loss following a profitable quarter a year ago

Peabody Energy Corp. (BTU) on Tuesday reported a second-quarter loss after posting a profit in the same period a year earlier. The company's results matched analysts' expectations.

The St. Louis-based company reported a loss of $73.3 million, or 27 cents per share, compared with a profit of $90.3 million, or 33 cents per share, in the same quarter a year earlier.

Losses, adjusted to account for discontinued operations, were 28 cents per share. The average estimate of analysts surveyed by Zacks Investment Research was for a loss of 28 cents per share.

The coal miner said revenue rose 1.9 percent to $1.76 billion from $1.73 billion in the same quarter a year earlier, and beat Wall Street forecasts. Analysts expected $1.65 billion, according to Zacks.

For the third quarter, the company expects to post a loss between 40 cents per share and 53 cents per share, much worse than the loss of 19 cents per share than analysts are expecting, according to FactSet.

Peabody Energy shares have fallen $4.21, or 22 percent, to $15.32 since the beginning of the year, while the Standard & Poor's 500 index has climbed 6.8 percent. The stock has dropped $1, or 6.1 percent, in the last 12 months.