TORONTO (miningweekly.com) – Canadian gold miner Iamgold after market close on Tuesday reported lower than expected headline earnings, higher cost of sales and lower prices offseting improved sales for the three months ended March 31.

The company’s NYSE-listed stock traded down 7.24% on Wednesday at $2.12 apiece, after the company reported an adjusted loss of $26.7-million, or $0.07 a share, compared with an adjusted profit of $12-million, or $0.03 a share, in the comparable period a year earlier.

The loss was wider than Wall Street analyst expectations of $0.04 a share and the company had revenue of $244.7-million, compared with a consensus forecast of $246.91-million.

The net loss from continuing operations attributable to equity holders for the first quarter was $16.5-million, or $0.04 a share, up $2.4-million from the same period a year earlier. The increase in the net loss was mainly related to higher cost of sales and income taxes, higher non-hedge derivative losses and higher finance costs, which were partially offset by the gain on the sale of its Diavik royalty and higher revenues.

Attributable gold sales from its four operating mines totalled 208 000 oz in the quarter, up 18% over the year-earlier period. The average realised gold price fell 5% year-on-year to $1 221/oz.

Iamgold reported that the cost of sales from continuing operations for the first quarter were $231.7-million, up $46.5-million from the same prior-year period, mainly owing to higher operating costs and higher depreciation expense.

Operating costs were higher year-over-year mainly owing to the inclusion of the new Westwood mine, in Quebec, which declared commercial production in the period, as well as harder rock and lower capitalised stripping at Essakane, in Burkina Faso. Partially offsetting rising costs were lower mining and milling costs at Rosebel, in Suriname, and the closure of the Mouska mine, in Quebec.

Iamgold’s consolidated all-in sustaining costs (AISC) were $1 113/oz sold in the first quarter, down 7%, or $85/oz, from the first quarter of 2014.

The company left its 2015 production guidance unchanged at between 820 000 oz and 860 000 oz, at total cash costs of $850/oz to $900/oz produced, and AISC of $1 075/oz to $1 175/oz sold.