Takeover fight costs Iamgold

The costs of a failed merger plan with Wheaton River Minerals and a takeover fight with Golden Star Resources added up to corporate charges of US$5.7 million, which nearly wiped out second-quarter profits at Iamgold (IMG-T).

Iamgold paid US$3 million for due-diligence investigations and legal and financial advice on the Wheaton merger and US$2.7 million for similar expenses in battling the Golden Star takeover bid. In the three months ended June 30, that left US$77,000 in net earnings out of US$31.5 million in revenues.

At the halfway mark of the year, Iamgold has net earnings of US$6 million, or US4 per share, on US$59.1 million in revenue, including US$3.7 million from royalties. In the first half of 2003, the company had earned US$5.5 million on revenues of US$48 million.