By
Reuters
Published
Jan 21, 2009
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CL King cuts Hanesbrands

By
Reuters
Published
Jan 21, 2009

Jan 21 (Reuters) - CL King & Associates downgraded Hanesbrands Inc (HBI.N) to "neutral" from "strong buy" on lower customer traffic, high debt levels and some impact to sales due to recent price increases, sending the underwear maker's shares down as much as 21 percent to an all-time low.


Playtex campaign

The company will also see gross margin pressure in the first half of the year on higher cotton costs and increased markdowns, analyst Scott Krasik wrote in a note to clients.

"At this level of profitability, we expect Hanesbrands could be forced to seek an amendment to its current credit agreement," Krasik said.

He cut his fourth-quarter earnings estimates on the company, whose brands include Bali, Champion, Playtex and Wonderbra, by 30 cents a share to 18 cents a share. He also lowered his full-year earnings estimates on the company.

Shares of Winston-Salem, North Carolina-based company fell to a low of $8.09, before recouping some losses to trade down $1.54 at $8.69 Wednesday morning on the New York Stock Exchange. (Reporting by Poojya Trivedi in Bangalore; Editing by Pratish Narayanan)

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