Under Armour Earnings Preview

Athletic apparel maker Under Armour

reports fourth-quarter results before the bell today and analysts are expecting a profit of 60 cents on revenue of $402 million. In the third quarter, Under Armour earned 84 cents a share on sales of $465.5 million. Current fourth-quarter EPS estimates range from 57 cents to 67 cents while current revenue estimates range from $390.2 million to $431 million. Company inventories grew 63% through the first nine months of 2011 to support the launch of new cold weather exercise gear, hats, and bags, according to MarketWatch. That could raise some concerns with the Street and investors as inventories rising at a faster clip than sales could indicate Under Armour will have resort to discounts to move product. Rise energy and materials costs could be another issues to keep an eye on as Under Armour uses oil-based products for some of its gear and while down over the past year, cotton prices are still high on a historical basis. Up over 46% in the past year, shares of Under Armour trade at over 33 times forward earnings and almost eight times book value.