Thu Jan 20, 2011 - Clothing retailer J Crew Group Inc (JCG.N), which is to be bought by TPG Capital and Leonard Green & Partners LP, forecast full-year earnings broadly in line with Wall Street estimates.

The clothing retailer, which had outperformed most peers in the beginning of 2010, had cut its outlook in August, saying shoppers were "nervous" and that discounts at rivals were pressuring them.

The retailer, which sells upscale women's and men's apparel, accessories and shoes, expects to earn $2.08-$2.13 a share for the year, while analysts on average were looking at earnings of $2.11, as per Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.

The company, which was caught in controversies over its sale to TPG Capital and Leonard Green, said it expects inventories to rise in the mid-teens on a percentage basis versus last year at the end of the fourth quarter.

It backed its gross margin outlook for the fourth quarter.

J Crew shares closed at $43.45 on Wednesday on the New York Stock Exchange.

(Reporting by Nivedita Bhattacharjee in Bangalore; Editing by Don Sebastian)