Verdict: Side-by-side breakdown using the Bull Rankings model. BTU scored 13.9, CNR scored 45.6 — CNR leads.
Compare another set
BTU
Peabody Energy Corporation
Thermal Coal · Quality-Growth
13.9
$25.13 · $3.1B
fundamentals as of
Score gap
31.7
CNR leads
CNR
Core Natural Resources, Inc.
Thermal Coal · Quality-Growth
45.6
$88.46 · $4.4B
fundamentals as of
At a glance · who leads each dimension, on the model's own rules
Fastest growthCNR+92.4%
Strongest balance sheetCNR0.12
Highest qualityCNR45 / 100
Largest discount to fair valueCNR-27%
Side by side · every name on one set of axes
The model, pillar by pillar (0–100 each)
BTU
stronger →← stronger
CNR
31
Qualityreturns · margins · balance sheet
45
14
Growthrevenue & earnings expansion
50
6
Valuevaluation vs sector peers
42
CNR is stronger on 3 of 3 pillars.
Fundamentals, head-to-head
BTU
CNR
-$178mF
FCF
$260mC
-8.9%D
Rev
+92.4%A
0.13A
D/E
0.12A
0.8xA
P/S
—
—
PEG
0.68A-
—
P/E
44.7xC
Winner per row is the stronger grade; where grades tie, the better figure breaks it. A true tie or a missing value shows no highlight.
Valuation · DCF cross-check
BTU
CNR
—
Price vs fair valuelower is cheaper
27% below
—
Growth the price impliesyr-1 FCF growth, fading to 4% · lower = less priced in
~7%/yr
—
1-yr DCF upside
+6%
—
5-yr DCF upside
+37%
—
10-yr DCF upside
+102%
The DCF is a cross-check on intrinsic value, separate from the quality-growth score above.
Model signals
BTU
No notable signals flagged.
CNR
Why this score
Buying back stock
Cut its dividend
Cyclical growth
The companies
BTUPeabody Energy Corporation
Thermal Coal · $25.13 · beta 0.32
Why now
Thermal Coal · market cap $3.1b. Down 39% from 52-week high of $41.14 — deep drawdown territory. Revenue -9% — in contraction; any catalyst that reverses this triggers re-rating. 6 sell-side analysts rate this a Buy with a mean 1-yr target of $31.58 (implying +26% upside).
Moat
Turnaround / out-of-favor name — GAAP-unprofitable for now, so the durability case is forward-looking: it rests on a recovery (margin normalization, a cyclical upturn or restructuring) or an un-monetized asset (IP / network effects / first-mover position) rather than on current reported results.
Risk
Free cash flow is negative (-$178m) — capital raises or debt issuance likely required; dilution / leverage risk. Revenue contracting -9% — the operational turn is not yet visible in the top line. Currently unprofitable (margin -4.6%) — path to GAAP profitability is the core thesis risk.
CNRCore Natural Resources, Inc.
Thermal Coal · $88.46 · beta 0.25
Why now
Thermal Coal · market cap $4.4b. Down 23% from 52-week high of $114.80 — deep drawdown territory. Revenue growing +92% — in hypergrowth territory. PEG 0.68 — paying under fair value for the growth rate. 4 sell-side analysts rate this a Strong Buy with a mean 1-yr target of $109.50 (implying +24% upside).
Moat
Free cash flow runs well ahead of reported net income, mostly because of depreciation and amortization ($643m) — non-cash charges that hold down reported earnings while cash generation stays strong.
Risk
Trailing P/E 45x sits well above the S&P median (~20x) — multiple compression is a real risk if revenue growth decelerates. Net margin 2.3% is thin — operating leverage cuts both ways; input-cost inflation or pricing pressure hits the bottom line first. ROE 3% is below the long-run sustainable threshold of ~10% — capital efficiency would need to improve for the equity base to compound at the market rate.
Verdict — model-derived comparison
Generating verdict… typically 5–10 seconds
Not investment advice. The Bull Rankings publishes a quantitative ranking model and accompanying analysis for general informational purposes only. Nothing on this page is a recommendation to buy, sell, or hold any security; nothing is personalized to your circumstances, risk tolerance, or tax situation. Investing carries the risk of loss — invest at your own risk and consider consulting a licensed financial professional before acting on anything you read here. See terms and methodology for full disclosures.
Where BTU and CNR diverge
On the headline score the gap is 31.7 points in favor of CNR. The widest single difference is Growth, where CNR leads by 35.9 points.
GrowthBTU 14.1 · CNR 50.0CNR +35.9
ValueBTU 6.1 · CNR 41.8CNR +35.7
QualityBTU 31.4 · CNR 45.3CNR +13.9
Pillars run 0–100. Value is judged against each company's own sector, so a Value score is a statement about a company relative to its own industry rather than to the other name here. A wide Value gap usually means the market already prices the difference in quality or growth — which is the trade-off this comparison comes down to.
Common questions
Is CNR or BTU the better stock?
CNR scores higher: CNR 45.6, BTU 13.9 out of 100 on the Bull Rankings quality-growth score, which blends business quality, growth and valuation into one number. A higher score means a stronger business at a more reasonable price — it is not a price target or a recommendation.
Where do CNR and BTU differ most?
The widest gap is growth, where CNR leads by 36 points on the 0–100 pillar scale. CNR leads all three pillars, so the gap is broad rather than a single-measure difference.
How are CNR and BTU scored?
Each carries the same 0–100 quality-growth score used everywhere on the site, built from three pillars — quality (profitability and returns on capital), growth (revenue and earnings), and value (what you pay for them) — combined as a geometric mean, so a weak pillar cannot be papered over by a strong one.
How current is this comparison?
The whole universe is re-scored every trading day after the US market close, so the scores and fundamentals here reflect the latest published edition.