Whitehaven Coal Ltd (ASX: WHC) shares have given back earlier gains of 0.8% to be trading flat at the time of writing.
Shares in the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) coal stock closed yesterday trading for $7.03. In morning trade on Friday, shares are changing hands for, well, $7.03 apiece. (I'll let you do the maths!) This leaves the Whitehaven share price up 61.6% since the recent 7 April closing lows.
For some context, the ASX 200 is down 0.5% today and up 18.0% since 7 April.
Whitehaven is catching plenty of attention today, following the release of the ASX 200 coal miner's June quarterly results.
Here's what investors are mulling over.
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Whitehaven shares in focus on Friday
Whitehaven shares are vacillating between modest gains and losses today after the company reported a 15% quarter-on-quarter increase in managed run of mine (ROM) coal production to 10.6 million tonnes.
Full-year FY 2025 ROM coal production was up 60% from FY 2024 to 39.1 million tonnes. The miner credited the boost to its full year of ownership of the Blackwater and Daunia coal mines.
Equity sales of produced coal for the June quarter came in at 6.0 million tonnes, and 26.5 million tonnes for FY 2025.
Both FY 2025 ROM coal production and coal sales were at the top end of the miner's full-year guidance.
Whitehaven received an average price of AU$189 per tonne over the three months, down 7% from the prior quarter.
Metallurgical coal sales represented around 64% of Whitehaven's FY 2025 revenue mix, while thermal coal sales made up the other 36%. Metallurgical (or coking) coal is primarily used in steel production, while thermal coal is primarily burned to produce electricity.
On the cost front, Whitehaven shares should be getting some support, with the miner reporting an FY 2025 unit cost of coal of $139 per tonne and full-year capex of around $390 million. Both figures came in better than guidance.
On the negative side of the ledger, the ASX 200 coal stock reported net debt of AU$600 million at 30 June, down from net cash of AU$300 million at 31 March.
Whitehaven said this reflects its first US$500 million deferred payment to BMA as well as soft market conditions in the quarter and the planned eight-week shutdown of Narrabri.
What did management say?
Commenting on the results that have yet to sustainably boost Whitehaven shares today, CEO Paul Flynn said, "We've established a solid foundation for our Queensland operations, with FY25 outcomes meeting or exceeding our guidance."
He noted that, "In parallel, our New South Wales operations performed well overall, particularly our open cut mines."
Flynn added:
Whitehaven is managing well through the current soft pricing environment. Our focus on cost management is reflected in the estimated A$139/t cost of coal for FY25, which is better than our cost guidance for the year.
Whitehaven shares will be in focus again on 21 August. That's when the ASX 200 coal stock is scheduled to release its complete FY 2025 financial results and FY 2026 guidance.
