Shares of True Religion Apparel Inc. plunged 24 percent Wednesday, a day after the premium denim maker reported a 9 percent drop in third quarter earnings. The results fell below Wall Street expectations.

After Tuesday’s market close, the Vernon company reported net income of $14.1 million (58 cents per share), compared with $15.4 million (64 cents) a year ago.

Revenue fell 4 percent to $82.4 million. U.S. wholesale net sales fell 31 percent to $31.9 million, offsetting a 52 percent rise to $32.6 million in the company’s e-commerce business. Net international sales were up more than 47 percent to $16.6 million. Selling, general and administrative expenses were up 27 percent to $30.6 million.

Analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters on average expected net income of 59 cents per share on revenue of $85 million.

True Religion increased its fiscal 2009 guidance to reflect stronger-than-expected gross margin improvement, with earnings per share expected to be in the range of $1.82 to $1.86, compared with an earlier range of $1.76 to $1.84.

“While we are pleased with our ability to move our business forward despite the challenging retail environment, we are more focused on the many opportunities that are being created in today’s marketplace to further extend our brand leadership,” Chief Executive Jeffrey Lubell said in a statement.

Despite this, Lazard Capital Markets analyst Todd Slater on Wednesday downgraded True Religion and seven other similar retailers, including Los Angeles-based Guess Inc., from “buy” to “hold,” noting that companies have been maintaining earnings by cutting costs rather than increasing sales.

True Religion shares closed down $6.49, or 24 percent, to $20.07 on the Nasdaq, erasing about two months of gains. Shares of Guess, which has not yet released earnings, closed up 8 cents, or less than 1 percent, to $37.54 on the New York Stock Exchange.