Iamgold profit falls 37%

Iamgold Corp. (IMG-T) said its quarterly profit fell 37 percent, hurt by lower volume of ounces sold, higher mining costs and higher taxes, and it also cut its 2010 production forecast.

The mid-tier gold producer's net profit in the quarter fell to $40.8 million US, or 11 cents a share, from $64.9 million, or 18 cents a share, a year earlier.

On an adjusted basis, the company earned 13 cents a share.

Analysts on average were expecting earnings of 21 cents a share, according to Thomson Reuters.

Revenue rose 8 percent to $254.1 million.

The company said it produced 256,000 ounces of gold in the quarter at an average cash cost of $577 per ounce. In the year-ago third quarter, it produced 244,000 ounces.

For 2010, Iamgold lowered its gold production forecast to a range of 940,000 to 970,000 ounces from its prior outlook of 980,000 to 1.01 million ounces, citing shutdown at its Essakane mine in Burkina Faso.