TORONTO (miningweekly.com) – Turkey focused miner Alamos Gold on Thursday lost nearly 10% in value on the TSX, after it reported fourth-quarter output of 42 500 oz of gold, bringing 2014 production to 140 500 oz, which missed the bottom-end of the company’s 150 000 oz guidance.

President and CEO John McCluskey said 2014 was a challenging year as the company transitioned between high-grade orebodies at its flagship Mulatos mine, in Mexico.

The company completed the transition to underground mining at San Carlos in the third quarter; however, the slower-than-expected commissioning of the upgraded mill circuit impacted high-grade gold output in the fourth quarter.

A severe rainy season that stretched into the fourth quarter also resulted in the company being unable to process all of the deferred leach pad production from the third quarter. It now expected to recover the ounces in the first quarter of 2015.

Alamos sold 38 400 oz of gold in the fourth quarter at an average realised gold price of $1 200/oz for quarterly revenues of $46.1-million, a 14% decrease from revenues of $53.8-million in the same period of 2013, which reflected a lower realised gold price and fewer ounces sold.

For 2014, the company sold 134 600 oz of gold at a realised price of $1 263/oz. Full-year revenue was $169.9-million, down 40% over the $282.2-million in 2013, also reflecting the decrease in the gold price during 2014 and fewer ounces sold.

The company expected to produce between 150 000 oz and 170 000 oz of gold in 2015 at cash operating costs of about $800/oz of gold sold, excluding royalties. Including royalties and assuming a $1 200/oz gold price, total cash costs were expected to be about $865/oz of gold sold and all-in sustaining costs were calculated at about $1 100/oz of gold sold.

Analysts at financial services firm Desjardins Capital Markets said they were concerned that Alamos’ 2015 total cash costs expectation was about 20% higher than what Wall Street was expecting. “The company appears to have a good plan in place to address the high-grade mill issues. We are downgrading Alamos to a ‘Hold’ from a ‘Buy’ on a weaker financial outlook,” analysts wrote in a note to clients.

The stock closed at C$8.74 apiece, having shed C$0.97 on Thursday.