(Reuters) When leading U.S. coal miner Peabody Energy Corp emerges from bankruptcy next month, a group of seven investment funds could reap hundreds of millions of dollars in gains from an unusual sale of discounted company stock.
Six hedge funds and a state investment fund together own about half of the company’s unsecured bonds, according to a January disclosure statement from Peabody. They used that leverage to gain access to a private placement of company stock, which has become surprisingly valuable amid an unexpected coal resurgence.