Shares of coal producers took a hit Friday, after Raymond James analyst Lucas Pipes said the companies are likely to be hurt by the carbon reduction initiatives that China has recently announced. Warrior Met Coal Inc.’s stock dropped 1.7% in midday trading, adding to Thursday’s 6.5% tumble, as Piper downgraded metallurgical coal producer to neutral from buy, and cut his price target to $22 from $28, as “Chinese Carbonomics” could serve has a “modest headwind” to coal pricing, as he expects Chinese met coal consumption to decline. Among other coal companies Piper covers, shares of Arch Resources Inc. slipped 0.9%, Alliance Resource Partners L.P. dropped 1.8%, Alpha Metallurgical Resources Inc. slid 7.2% and Consol Energy Inc. shed 3.3%. The selloff comes as the S&P 500 slipped 0.6%.
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