March 27 (Reuters) - Credit Suisse initiated coverage of footwear retailer Deckers Outdoor Corp (DECK.O) with an "underperform" rating, saying the company's flagship Ugg brand was nearing saturation.

Ugg Spring 2009 (Source: www.uggaustralia.com)

Deckers shares were down 6 percent at $54.22 in midday trade Friday March 27 on Nasdaq. They fell as much as 8 percent to a low of $53.07 earlier in the session.

Analyst Omar Saad said the Ugg brand, which generates 84 percent of the company's total sales, may see a fall in shipment growth by 2010.

The analyst said the company may not see the same levels of profitability as it expands the brand outside its monopoly Australian Sheepskin boot line into more competitive, traditional casual-footwear categories.

Saad has a price target of $45 on Deckers' stock.

Credit Suisse began coverage of Guess Inc (GES.N) with an "outperform" rating, and Warnaco Group (WRC.N), Iconix Brand (ICON.O) and Gildan Activewear (GIL.N) at "neutral." (Reporting by Sumedha Mukherjee in Bangalore; Editing by Vinu Pilakkott)