(Bloomberg) -- Canadian miner Iamgold Corp. is exploring a possible sale of all or part of the company amid a wave of consolidation in the gold sector, according to people familiar with the matter.
The Toronto-based miner is working with advisers and has spoken to several potential buyers, said the people, who asked not to be identified because the matter is private.
Iamgold's plans could still change and there's no guarantee it would succeed in selling itself, the people said.
A representative for Iamgold declined to comment.
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Shares of Iamgold closed up 9.4%, valuing the company at about C$1.6 billion ($1.2 billion). The stock had fallen 36% this year through Wednesday. Some analysts have cut their ratings for the stock, expressing concern about its weaker-than-expected results, the increased risk to its 2019 guidance, and uncertainty around its Westwood project in Quebec.
The decision to explore a sale follows several sizable mergers in the gold space, including Newmont Mining Corp.'s $12 billion acquisition of GoldCorp Inc. and Barrick Gold Corp.'s $7.8 billion acquisition of Randgold Resources Ltd.
--With assistance from Danielle Bochove.
To contact the reporters on this story: Scott Deveau in New York at sdeveau2@bloomberg.net;Dinesh Nair in London at dnair5@bloomberg.net
To contact the editors responsible for this story: Elizabeth Fournier at efournier5@bloomberg.net, ;Aaron Kirchfeld at akirchfeld@bloomberg.net, Michael Hytha, Liana Baker
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