The company posted a 4 percent rise in average prices of its uranium in the final quarter of last year. However, in a post-earnings call, Chief Executive Tim Gitzel said he was "cautiously more optimistic" about the industry.

"We have seen reduction in global demand expectations, driven by early reactor retirements, delays in reactor construction programs, slower-than-expected restart process in Japan, and by changes to government administrations," Gitzel said.

Cameco lost 4.8 percent in trading on the Toronto Stock Exchange and its U.S.-listed shares fell 4.6 percent after the results. That came as markets were falling more generally, however, and compared to a 12 percent drop after results a quarter earlier.

Uranium producers have been struggling since the 2011 tsunami that forced Japan to shut all of its nuclear reactors. Some of those have restarted since, but low demand has resulted in a glut.

Saskatchewan-based Cameco has been working to cut its losses with measures such as suspending production from the McArthur River mine in Saskatchewan, the world's biggest uranium mine.

The company's net loss narrowed to C$62 million ($49 million), or 16 Canadian cents per share, in the quarter ended Dec. 31, from C$144 million, or 36 Canadian cents per share, a year earlier.

On an adjusted basis, the company earned 46 Canadian cents per share. Analysts had expected a profit of 35 Canadian cents, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.

Revenue fell 8.8 percent to C$809 million, hurt by lower realized prices for uranium under its Nukem unit, which handles Cameco's marketing operations globally.

(Reporting by Ahmed Farhatha in Bengaluru; Editing by Maju Samuel)