Oakley’s Profit Rises 8%; Revenue Up 21%

Oakley Inc., a Foothill Ranch-based sunglasses maker, reported higher third-quarter earnings and sales that beat Wall Street estimates.

The company, which is scaling back its apparel and footwear lines, also increased its sales forecast for 2006 based on a better-than-expected 21% rise in third-quarter revenue.

Oakley said its net income rose 8% to $17.3 million, or 25 cents a share, compared with $16.1 million, or 23 cents, a year earlier.

Revenue rose to $210.2 million, helped by a 25% increase in sales of sunglasses, goggles and prescription eyewear and sales from its newly acquired Oliver Peoples brand and Optical Shop of Aspen, a retail chain.

Analysts on average had been expecting earnings per share of 22 cents on sales of $192.8 million, according to Reuters Estimates.

Oakley, which also operates retail stores, is undergoing a restructuring to focus on its sports-oriented eyewear.

For 2006, Oakley forecast earnings per share of 68 cents, excluding items, slightly below a Wall Street consensus of 69 cents, according to Reuters Estimates.

Shares of Oakley rose a penny Thursday to $18.44 during the regular session and gained an additional 1% in after-hours trading.