Reuters - Shares of G-III Apparel Group Ltd (GIII.O) rose as much as 16 percent on Thursday 4 June, a day after the clothing maker posted better-than-expected first-quarter results on strength at its dress and sportswear businesses.

G-III Sports

Lazard Capital Markets upgraded the stock to "buy" from "hold," saying the company's second-quarter forecast was conservative.

On Wednesday 3 June, the company, which has licenses to make branded apparel under the Calvin Klein, Tommy Hilfiger and Dockers labels, forecast a second-quarter loss of 28 cents to 32 cents a share. It forecast revenue of $135 million, slightly above Wall Street estimates.

Lazard, which has a price target of $15 on the stock, said sales and margins can continue to expand as G-III extends into dresses and sportswear.

According to Brean Murray Carret & Co analyst Eric Beder, G-III is one of the few domestic-based apparel players with multiple growth drivers in fiscal 2010 and fiscal 2011 -- such as the various Calvin Klein rollouts and further expansion into private label.

Beder raised his price target on the stock by $2 to $12.

Shares of the company rose to a high of $9.78 before shedding some gains to trade up $1 at $9.44 the morning of Thursday 4 June on Nasdaq.

(Reporting by Anne Pallivathuckal in Bangalore; Editing by Himani Sarkar)