IAMGOLD Posts Loss On Weak Sales, Charges - Update

(RTTNews) - Canadian gold miner IAMGOLD Corp. (IAG, IMG.TO), Monday reported a slip to loss in the second quarter, hurt mainly by lower sales amid weak prices and volumes, as well as impairment charges. Excluding items, the company posted a profit that missed Wall Street estimates.

Moving forward, the company reaffirmed its gold production outlook for 2013 and expects production costs to inch down.

IAMGOLD reported a second-quarter net loss of $28 million or $0.08 per share, compared with net income of $53 million or $0.14 per share last year.

Results for the recent quarter included $39 million in impairment charges related to marketable securities and equity accounted investments.

Excluding items, adjusted earnings for the quarter were $30 million or $0.08 per share, compared with $75 million or $0.20 per share a year ago.

On average, 13 analysts polled by Thomson Reuters expected earnings of $0.09 per share for the quarter. Analysts' estimates typically exclude special items.

Sales for the second quarter dropped 17 percent to $301 million from $364.5 million in the prior year. Analysts expected sales of $323.74 million for the quarter.

Gold sales for the quarter fell 5 percent year-over-year to 201,000 ounces, as late-June production at its Mouska mine was not sold until the initial days of July. Average realized gold price was lower by 17 percent at $1,373 per ounce.

For 2013, the company continues to expect gold production of 875,000 to 950,000 ounces. The company lowered gold cost guidance to $790-$840 per ounce from $850-$925 per ounce.

The company's stock is trading at $5.08, down $0.06 or 1.17%, on a volume of 4.8 million shares on the NYSE. In after hours, the stock gained $0.04 or 0.75%.