Kenneth Cole sees revenue growth returning in Q3

Aug 3 (Reuters) - Kenneth Cole Productions Inc forecast a third-quarter profit above analysts' estimates, as the clothing and footwear company expects revenue growth to resume in the quarter.

Kenneth Cole

The company, which has closed stores to flush out excess inventory and named a new chief executive in June, reported a lower second-quarter revenue due to weak sales at its retail business.

Kenneth Cole, named after the designer who founded the company in 1982, posted a second-quarter profit of 3 cents a share, compared with 5 cents a share a year ago.

Revenue dropped 5.3 percent to $102.2 million, missing estimates of $109.7 million.

The company expects a third-quarter profit of 29-31 cents a share. Analysts, on average, were looking for a profit of 21 cents a share, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.

Shares of the company had closed at $12.63 on Tuesday on the New York Stock Exchange.

(Reporting by Chris Jonathan Peters in Bangalore; Editing by Saumyadeb Chakrabarty)