FRANKFURT (dpa-AFX) - Profit-taking after positive news has further slowed down the recently very well performing shares of Hugo Boss. After a skeptical analyst comment had already weighed on the fashion retailer's papers on Friday, investors now took advantage of pleasing business figures on Tuesday to cash in.

Hugo Boss shares had briefly peeked into the profit zone in early trading, but then fell by around two percent to 59.40 euros in the late morning. This made them one of the weakest stocks in the MDax. The index of mid-caps hardly moved from the spot.

According to preliminary data, Hugo Boss had defied high inflation in the past fiscal year and increased sales and earnings more significantly than analysts had expected. The fashion group benefited from its brand renewal program. Demand for premium and luxury goods thus decoupled from a generally weaker consumer climate, even if growth in the final quarter weakened somewhat compared to the course of the year.

Looking at the final quarter of the year, analyst Volker Bosse of Baader Bank pointed out that Hugo Boss had to hold its own against a strong prior-year level in the final quarter. Overall, the specialist described the preliminary results as strong.

In other respects, too, analysts were largely full of praise for the business figures. Expert Manjari Dhar of Canadian bank RBC, for example, emphasized that the positive momentum at the fashion retailer was continuing. She added that momentum remains strong, especially in the European region and in the Americas. In Asia, on the other hand, business was still weighed down by the pandemic restrictions, she said.

According to analyst Louise Singlehurst of US investment bank Goldman Sachs, the wholesale business performed particularly well. This has now regained more weight after years of the fashion group focusing heavily on expanding its own retail business. According to Hugo Boss, the reorientation has borne fruit in the past year, with "visibility and market penetration with important wholesale partners" having been significantly improved, it said.

Nevertheless, the results apparently did not surprise so clearly that they could have provided arguments for further share price increases. Analyst Michael Kuhn of Deutsche Bank, for example, wrote that the key data for 2022 had exceeded market expectations overall and the company's targets only slightly. Some institutional investors had probably even expected slightly better results. For investors, all in all, the news was probably not good enough to drive the shares further up.

Starting from the interim low in early November, Hugo Boss securities gained nearly 39 percent to the high last Wednesday. This had meant the highest level since 2019. However, the first setback already occurred on Friday, after analyst Maria-Laura Adurno from the U.S. investment bank Bank of America had made critical comments. The recent above-average share price performance set the bar very high, she said.

From a chart perspective, however, the picture remains brighter despite the current setbacks. Since a price jump shortly before Christmas, Hugo Boss shares have been trading comfortably above all the important average lines that serve as benchmarks for short-, medium- or long-term trends./la/tih/stk