Under Armour Shares Soar On Strong Quarterly Earnings

Under Armour (NYSE: UA) shares jumped more than 12 percent on Tuesday after the athletic gear maker reported better-than-expected second-quarter earnings.

The Baltimore-based company earned $6.7 million, six cents a share, narrowly beating analyst expectations of five cents a share. It also raised full-year earnings between $1.8 and $1.82 billion, up from earlier projections of $1.78 to $1.8 billion.

The numbers were adjusted upward after the Baltimore-based company saw clothing sales grow 23.5 percent to $204.8 million in the second quarter. It also saw its footwear sales jump 43.8 percent to $67.4 million based mostly on new running shoes, according to the Associated Press.

Under Armour still trails the big footwear powers such as Nike (NYSE: NKE) and Adidas AG (ADS.DE) by a wide margin, but has made expansion into the industry a priority. It has continued to add athletic endorsers, such as New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady and Milwaukee Bucks point guard Brandon Jennings, as a way of cutting into the lucrative market.

Still, Under Armour's $5.7 billion market cap pales in comparison to Nike's $42.91 billion. It also has a significantly higher growth multiple -- trading at approximately 44 times expecting 2012 earnings of $1.18 a share.

Under Armour was trading at a 52-week high of $54.65, up $6.27 in midday trading.