Harry Winston shares surge on 2Q results, upgrade

LOS ANGELES

Shares of Harry Winston Diamond Corp. surged Thursday, a day after it reported better-than-expected second-quarter earnings and a UBS analyst upgraded the company.

THE SPARK: The Canadian diamond company reported late Wednesday it earned $16.5 million, or 22 cents a share, in the second quarter. Revenue jumped 62 percent to $153.7 million.

UBS Investment Research analyst Brian MacArthur upgraded Harry Winston from "neutral" to a "buy," and raised his 2011 earnings per share estimates for the company to 42 cents from 23 cents.

THE BIG PICTURE: Harry Winston showed improvement in its mining and retail segments.

The company had three rough diamond sales during the quarter and sustained higher prices in certain categories of rough diamonds, MacArthur noted.

Its retail operation posted positive quarterly earnings for the second quarter in a row.

The company also announced it has boosted its ownership interest in its Diavik joint venture to 40 percent.

SHARE ACTION: Shares of Harry Winston rose $1.94, or nearly 19 percent, to $12.20 in late trading. Shares have ranged between $5.84 and $14.57 over the past 52 weeks.