Analyst lifts Oxford Industries to 'Buy' rating

Analyst boosts Oxford Industries to 'Buy' rating; 2nd-quarter adjusted profit tops Street view

• On 11:30 am EDT, Thursday September 3, 2009

NEW YORK (AP) -- Shares of Oxford Industries Inc. surged Thursday after the apparel company's second-quarter adjusted profit results easily beat Wall Street's expectations.

Late Wednesday the company -- which makes brands such as Tommy Bahama, Oxford Apparel and others -- reported adjusted earnings of 30 cents per share. Analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters, whose estimates typically exclude one-time items, forecast net income of 7 cents per share.

CEO J. Hicks Lanier said the Atlanta-based company's results were helped by carefully managed inventory and cost-control efforts.

KeyBanc Capital Markets' Edward Yruma said Oxford has managed itself well during the recession by leaving underperforming businesses and keeping its prices steady.

"The second-quarter's results begin to bear fruit of this," he wrote in a note to clients.

Yruma is also optimistic about Tommy Bahama as "a sharpening of key price points in key products like polo shirts has helped stabilize sales without resorting to significant discounting."

He lifted Oxford's rating to "Buy" from "Hold" and gave an initial price target of $18.

The company's stock jumped $2.93, or 20.8 percent, to $17.03 in midday trading. The shares have traded in a 52-week range of $3.14 to $29.02.

Buzz up!