SYDNEY, Aug 18 (Reuters) - Australia's Whitehaven Coal Ltd WHC.AX posted a fiscal 2016 net profit of A$20.5 million ($15.69 million) on Thursday, beating analysts' forecasts.
The producer of coal used in power generation and to make steel, whose customers are predominantly in Japan and India, was forecast by analysts to show a profit of around A$14.6 million, according to Thomson Reuters data.
Whitehaven has seen a dramatic rise in its stock from just A$0.70 in January to Wednesday's close of A$2.04 amid an expansion by the company in eastern Australia. ($1 = 1.3062 Australian dollars)