Shares in commodity trader Noble tank after profit warning

SINGAPORE (Reuters) - Shares in Noble Group Ltd lost a fifth of their value to hit their lowest in 14 years after a profit warning by the struggling commodity trader stoked worries that its recovery from a deep restructuring could take longer than expected.

The Singapore-listed company cited a challenging operating environment in its profit warning on Tuesday night and said it was caught out by movements in coal prices. It will hold an earnings call at 6 p.m. (1000 GMT).

The company has been seeking to rebuild investor confidence after harsh setbacks two years ago, when a questioning of its accounts by Iceberg Research and a commodities downturn triggered a share price collapse, credit rating downgrades and a series of writedowns and asset sales.

Noble, which has stood by its accounts, appointed two new co-CEOs last year after its CEO quit. The company's shares are down around 90 percent from mid-February 2015 when Iceberg questioned its accounts.

It warned of a net loss of about $130 million in the three months ending March, the weakest result in more than two years excluding a writedown of over a billion dollars reported in October-December 2015, which led to big losses.

At its shareholder meeting in Singapore last month, some shareholders cast doubt on Noble's prospects given its weak share performance, but Chairman Richard Elman repeatedly said the company had taken tough decisions and would begin to show a recovery later this year.

Noble is now mainly focused on oil liquids and energy coal businesses, and is cutting debt and taking steps to improve liquidity.

Several traders left the company in recent weeks, Reuters reported earlier this week, citing sources familiar with the moves.

Noble's shares fell as much as 22 percent to S$1.00, their lowest since 2003, in morning trade. The stock market was closed on Wednesday for a public holiday.

(Reporting by Anshuman Daga; Additional reporting by Aradhana Aravindan; Editing by Stephen Coates and Edwina Gibbs)