True Religion misses expectations

Premium jeans maker True Religion Apparel Inc. on Tuesday reported quarterly earnings that fell significantly short of Wall Street expectations and cut its 2006 outlook, sending its shares down more than 22% after hours.

Chief Financial Officer Charles Lesser blamed exceptionally warm weather outside the U.S. and softer-than-expected sales in Japan for the lowered sales outlook.

Shares of True Religion fell $4.78 to $16.48 in extended trading after having risen $1.22 to $21.26 in the regular session.

On the possible sale of True Religion, Chief Executive Jeffrey Lubell said the Los Angeles-based company was still reviewing strategic alternatives.

For the year, True Religion expects sales of $138 million to $140 million, down from its previous estimate of $148 million to $150 million.

True Religion cut its 2006 earnings outlook to $1.11 to $1.12 a share, before one-time expenses on arbitration settlement and unusual banking expenses of 8 cents a share. In August, the company projected 2006 earnings of about $1.25 a share, before one-time expense of 5 cents a share.

Analysts have forecast earnings of $1.27 a share, before items, on revenue of $149.9 million for the year, according to Reuters Estimates.

For the third quarter, the company reported adjusted earnings of 37 cents a share, which missed analysts’ expectations by 7 cents a share. The company’s quarterly sales of $42.9 million were below analysts’ estimates by $5 million.