Analyst Sees Difficult 2009, Better 2010 For Knot

NEW YORK (AP) — A William Blair analyst called the outlook of wedding Web site operator The Knot Inc. "cautiously optimistic" Thursday, following meetings with the company's management.

"People are still getting married and having children — The Knot closed 2008 with record membership— and usage trends suggest that the tendency toward nesting during turbulent times remains intact," wrote Meggan Friedman, who rates the company "Market Perform."

She said while "cyclical pressures will likely hamper growth in 2009 on the registry and national advertising front in particular, we believe the company is well positioned for a return to more normalized growth in 2010."

The analyst lowered her 2009 estimates to earnings of 16 cents per share from 22 cents and sales of $107 million from $109 million.

She estimates 2010 earnings of 28 cents per share on sales of $118 million. This compares with average analyst estimates of 24 cents per share on sales of $108.9 million.

Shares of the New York company rose a penny to $5.86 in late morning trading.