By Andria Cheng

NEW YORK (Dow Jones) -- After a worse-than-expected holiday season, beauty giant Estee Lauder Cos. on Friday cut its sales and per-share profit forecasts for the fiscal second quarter and year and said that the economic environment made definitive business forecasting difficult.

The New York-based company said it expects profit in the quarter ended Dec. 31 to be 75 cents to 82 cents a share, with sales excluding the impact of currency translations declining about 6%. Estee Lauder (EL) had projected sales growth of as much as 3%.

Profit for the year ending June 30 is expected to come in between $1.30 and $1.60 a share, with constant-currency sales estimated to be, at worst, down 3%, compared to its previous forecast for sales growth of as much as 5%.

Analysts, on average, had expected a profit of 98 cents a share in the second quarter and $2.22 a share for the year, according to FactSet.

Its stock was down 8.5% in premarket trading.

Separately, rival Elizabeth Arden Inc. (RDEN) said its fiscal second-quarter profit would also fall short of its previous projection, with sales falling as much as 13.5%. It also cut its outlook for the second half of the year.

Estee Lauder joined a chorus of other companies, including its department-store customers Macy's Inc. (M) and Nordstrom Inc. (JWN), in warning that results would fall short of previous outlooks, as the global recession and plunging consumer confidence led to widespread cutbacks in discretionary spending.

"Our business was no exception to the downturn in consumer spending," said Chief Executive William Lauder. "The current economic conditions, coupled with significant retailer destocking, will continue to negatively affect our sales for the balance of our fiscal year."

Current retail trends in North America are expected to continue for the remainder of the fiscal year, while in Europe, the Middle East and Africa, sales rates are anticipated to slow in certain key countries, Estee Lauder said. While its outlook for Asia is "cautiously positive," Estee Lauder sees some softening in certain markets in the region.

The dollar's rise in value against foreign currencies is also expected to lower reported overseas sales when they are translated back to U.S. dollars by about 6.5% in the second quarter and by as much as 7% for the year.

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