Adidas AG, the world's second- largest sporting-goods maker, fell to a two-week low in Frankfurt trading after HSBC Holdings Plc cut the stock to ``underweight,'' saying 2009 earnings estimates are too high, Bloomberg reported.
Adidas slid 2.4 percent, or 1.02 euros, to 40.98 euros today, the lowest close since Aug. 4. The shares were the second-biggest decliner in Germany's benchmark DAX Index.
Adidas, which forecasts that profit will gain at least 15 percent in 2008, may report slower growth next year because of declining profitability and higher purchasing costs, according to HSBC. The bank cut its rating from ``neutral.''
``We expect Asian sales growth to moderate in 2009, growth in Europe to halve and see no reason why the US market should not remain more or less flat for the foreseeable future,'' analysts led by Erwan Rambourg wrote in the note.