In spite of a 36% increase in overall revenues during the second quarter, Everlast Inc. posted a net loss of $596,000 compared to net income of $79,000 in Q2 last year. During the quarter, the company took a $600,000 hit for events including a pension liability settlement, a facility closure in New York, and marketing fees revolving around NBC’s show, “The Contender.” EVST reported a diluted loss per share of 18 cents versus diluted earnings per share of 3 cents last year.

Net sales of apparel and sporting goods increased 41% to $9.5 million compared with $6.8 million in the second quarter of fiscal 2004. Net licensing revenues advanced 22% to $2.9 million compared with $2.4 million in the prior period. Gross margin fell 2,600 basis points to 44.4%, but operating expenses tried to help out by declining 1,960 basis points to 44.2% of sales. The Q2 operating margin dropped to 2.4% versus 6.6% last year with continued operations posting a $23,000 gain.