Iamgold Corp. (TSE:IMG), a Canadian producer of gold focused on Suriname and Burkina Faso, rose to the highest in five weeks after reporting a narrower net loss as revenue beat estimates.
Shares rose as high as C$4.45, the lowest intraday price since July 10 and were trading at C$4.39, up 4.5 percent, at 10:23 a.m. in Toronto.
Net loss narrowed to $16 million, or $0.04 loss per share, in the April-to-June period, from a net loss of $28.4 million, or $0.08 loss per share, in the year-earlier period, the Toronto, Ontario-based company said in a statement late yesterday.
Adjusted earnings were $0.02 per share. That missed the $0.03 average estimate of 16 analysts.
Revenue dropped to $288.6 million from $301.1 million as both sales volume and average realized price for gold fell from a year earlier. That result surpassed Bay Street's consensus of $274.6 million.
Iamgold said its average realized gold price for the quarter dropped to $1,288 per ounce from $1,373 per ounce last year, and gold sales volume slipped to 192 thousand ounces from 201 thousand ounces.
Also weighing on results was cost of sales that rose by $37.5 million to $246.3 million.
The company had to contend with lower gold production in the quarter, due to poor grades at Rosebel mine stemming from harsh rainy season as well as weak output from the aging Mouska mine.
To return to growth, Chief Executive Officer Steve Letwin said the company is focused on improving efficiency and productivity across all operations.
"We are confident that we will meet guidance for the year," he said. "With Niobec continuing to demonstrate operational excellence, we raised guidance for both niobium production and operating margins."