Ramaco Resources Q1 Earnings Call Highlights

Key Points

• Ramaco is leaning on its strong balance sheet to buy back stock while still funding coal and rare earth development. The company has repurchased about 2.6 million shares this year, leaving roughly $63 million under its $100 million authorization and nearly $500 million in liquidity.
• First-quarter results were pressured by weak coal pricing despite solid cost control. Adjusted EBITDA came in at a $1.8 million loss as realized prices fell to $114 per ton, though cash costs stayed below $100 per ton for the third straight quarter.
• Brook Mine and low-vol coal projects remain central to growth as Ramaco advances rare earth studies, drilling, and pilot plant plans while also expanding low-vol production. The company expects more tons from Laurel Fork and Berwind, and it is pursuing a restructuring to better separate its coal and critical minerals businesses.

Ramaco Resources NASDAQ: METC executives said the company is using a stronger balance sheet to repurchase shares while continuing to fund metallurgical coal projects and development work tied to its Brook Mine rare earth and critical minerals opportunity.

On the company’s first-quarter 2026 earnings call, Chairman and CEO Randy Atkins said Ramaco has repurchased about 2.6 million shares of its Class A common stock so far this year at an average price of about $14.50 per share. That represents about 5% of its stock. Atkins said the company still has about $63 million of remaining authorization under the $100 million buyback plan approved last year.

“As a dual-platform company, we’re currently seeing very little value in our stock price that reflects our rare earth or other critical mineral assets,” Atkins said. He added that Ramaco would continue to evaluate whether additional repurchases are a prudent use of cash.

Chief Financial Officer Jeremy Sussman said Ramaco ended the first quarter with nearly $500 million in liquidity, which Atkins described as about $490 million and up about 310% year over year. Sussman said the company’s liquidity gives it the flexibility to invest in coal and rare earth projects while continuing to opportunistically repurchase shares.

Lower Coal Prices Weigh on Results Despite Cost Control

Ramaco’s first-quarter adjusted EBITDA was a loss of $1.8 million, compared with adjusted EBITDA of $10 million in the first quarter of 2025. Sussman said Class A earnings per share showed a loss of $0.30 in the quarter, compared with a loss of $0.19 in the year-earlier period.

The company reported cash costs per ton sold of $98, which Sussman said placed Ramaco in the first quartile of the U.S. cash cost curve among its Central Appalachian metallurgical coal peers. Atkins said it was the third consecutive quarter with cash costs below $100 per ton.

However, cash margins declined to $16 per ton from $24 per ton a year earlier. Sussman attributed the decrease to lower realized prices of $114 per ton, compared with $122 per ton in the first quarter of 2025. He said domestic high-vol metallurgical coal markets remain weak, even as Australian benchmark pricing improved year over year.

Atkins said the company’s quarterly miss was “all top line,” citing weak coal pricing, especially for high-vol coal. He also said fuel costs have risen sharply amid the conflict involving Iran, with rack pricing for fuel products reaching as high as $5.45 per gallon across Ramaco’s operations, up from about $2.50 at the end of last year. Atkins said that, based on the company’s usage, each $1 per gallon increase in diesel fuel adds about $1.50 per ton to costs on an annualized basis.

Low-Vol Coal Projects Remain a Focus

Executives said Ramaco is maintaining discipline in high-vol production while investing in low-vol metallurgical coal growth. Atkins said the company restarted its Laurel Fork Mine in the prior quarter and plans to add a third section at its Berwind Mine this summer. At full production, those projects are expected to add 100,000 to 200,000 tons of low-vol coal in 2026 and about 500,000 additional tons in 2027.

Chris Blanchard, executive vice president for mine planning and development, said the company has moderated production from its Elk Creek Complex because of poor high-vol coal pricing. He said Ramaco may make further reductions during the year if market conditions warrant.

At Berwind, Blanchard said the first of two new air shafts is nearing completion, with both expected online by late August. The ventilation upgrade is expected to allow the mine to ramp with another full super section and increase production to 900,000 to 1 million clean tons annually.

At the Maven low-vol complex, Ramaco has started work on a Norfolk Southern rail load-out project. Blanchard said all major materials have been procured and excavation is underway. The unit train load-out is expected to be fully operational in the fourth quarter of 2026, eliminating trucking logistics costs from Maven. Atkins said the load-out is expected to save about $20 per ton on trucking costs and gives the company more flexibility as it evaluates the timing of a potential 1.5 million ton Maven underground mine project.

Sales Commitments Cover Most Planned Production

Chief Commercial Officer Jason Fannin said Ramaco has secured commitments for 3.5 million tons in 2026, representing about 90% of planned annual production at the midpoint. Domestic customers account for 1.1 million tons at an average fixed price of $138 per ton. Export commitments total 2.4 million tons, including 1 million tons at an average fixed price of $107 per ton and 1.4 million tons tied to index-based pricing.

Fannin said first-quarter realized pricing was slightly lower quarter over quarter despite broader benchmark strength because Ramaco’s sales were tied to specific geographies and indices, and because of non-recurring operational headwinds. Severe weather disrupted CSX and Norfolk Southern rail networks in January and February, delaying some shipments, including higher-priced domestic specialty orders and a PLV-linked export shipment that slipped into the second quarter.

For the second quarter, Sussman said Ramaco expects shipments of 900,000 to 1 million tons. He said cash costs are expected to be toward the higher end of the company’s full-year range because of elevated fuel costs.

Fannin said the company is optimistic about an improved metallurgical coal market in the second half of 2026, citing stronger steel market conditions in the U.S. and Europe, projected growth in India crude steel production, lower Chinese steel exports through April and expected high-vol supply contraction.

Brook Mine and Critical Minerals Work Advances

Executives also detailed progress on the company’s Brook Mine rare earth and critical minerals project in Wyoming. Atkins said Ramaco is awaiting a revised conceptual study from Hatch, expected in late June, and a technical geological report summary from Weir to follow. Both analyses are based on the company’s new patent-pending carbochlorination processing technique.

Mike Woloschuk, executive vice president of critical mineral operations, said key engineering deliverables for the Hatch study were completed in the first quarter. He said Ramaco identified opportunities to increase chlorine recycling and expects additional opportunities to be included in the final study report.

Woloschuk said Ramaco completed 33 drill holes totaling more than 9,300 feet of core in the quarter, including 27 infill holes and six water monitoring holes. Since the program began, the company has drilled 174 holes and 35,000 feet of core. He said four drill rigs are currently on site and drilling is expected to continue through year-end.

Construction of the pilot plant building is expected to be complete in late summer or early fall, with fabricated interior equipment installation beginning this fall and full pilot operations starting in 2027. Woloschuk said Ramaco is also building out an internal geometallurgical laboratory at its iCAM facility to increase testing volume and reduce reliance on external labs.

Atkins said advanced discussions are continuing with domestic and overseas groups regarding potential offtake transactions and non-dilutive third-party financings. In response to an analyst question, he said gallium and scandium are among the products drawing interest from potential customers.

Company Plans New Internal Structure

Atkins said Ramaco has taken legal and accounting steps toward a reorganization intended to better reflect its coal and critical minerals platforms. The company has formed separate entities within a holding company structure under parent Ramaco Resources.

• Ramaco Royalty will hold mineral reserves, infrastructure, intellectual property rights and related income-producing assets, including metallurgical and thermal coal reserves and rare earth and critical minerals.
• Ramaco Critical Mineral Resources will house Brook Mine rare earth, critical minerals and thermal coal mining, production and sales operations.
• Ramaco Refining will hold the carbochlorination separation facilities planned to process Brook Mine critical mineral feedstocks into oxides and mixed rare earth carbonate.

Atkins said the restructuring is intended to enhance shareholder value and provide more operational and financial flexibility. He said Ramaco expects to have the pieces of the reorganization in place during the second half of the year.

About Ramaco Resources NASDAQ: METC

Ramaco Resources, Inc NASDAQ: METC is a U.S.-based producer of premium metallurgical coal and industrial minerals, focused on supplying the steel and allied industries. The company’s operations are centered in the Appalachian region of West Virginia, where it develops, mines and processes high-carbon coal products designed to meet the quality requirements of blast‐furnace and electric‐arc furnace steelmakers.

The firm’s flagship asset is the Elk Creek underground mine in Wyoming County, West Virginia, which began commercial production in 2019 and delivers a range of high‐grade metallurgical and anthracite coals.

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