DANBURY, Conn.--Ethan Allen Interiors Inc. (“Ethan Allen” or the “Company”) (NYSE:ETH) reported operating results for the three and six months ended December 31, 2010.

Mr. Farooq Kathwari, Chairman, President and CEO commenting on the results stated, “We are pleased with continued increases in revenues and profitability during the quarter ended December 31, 2010. With a sales increase of 21% and operating income of $10.5 million, we have benefited from the many initiatives we have taken to improve our marketing and operations. We also continue to maintain strong liquidity, ending the quarter with cash and securities of $85.6 million. Fiscal year to date, we have retired $6.9 million of our bonds and repurchased $5.4 million of our common stock. Later this year, we also expect to receive a federal tax refund of approximately $17 million.”

Three Months Ended December 31, 2010

Net sales for the quarter ended December 31, 2010 were $173.3 million, an increase of 21.0% compared with the prior year quarter. The Company’s Retail division net sales were $131.0 million, an increase of 22.3% from the prior year quarter. Written orders booked during the quarter by the Retail division were 5.7% greater than the prior year quarter including comparable design center orders which grew 10.7%.

Net income for the quarter ended December 31, 2010 was $14.7 million or $0.51 earnings per diluted share compared with a net loss the prior year of $3.3 million or a $0.12 loss per diluted share. Excluding special items in both periods, net income for the quarter ended December 31, 2010 was $5.6 million or $0.19 per diluted share compared with a net loss the prior year quarter of $1.6 million or $0.06 loss per diluted share.

Six Months Ended December 31, 2010

For the six months ended December 31, 2010, net sales were $338.2 million, up 21.0% from the prior year comparable period. Net income year to date was $18.6 million or $0.64 per diluted share compared with a year to date net loss of $16.9 million or $0.58 loss per diluted share the prior year. Excluding special items in both periods for the six months, current year earnings were $0.30 per diluted share compared with a net loss per diluted share of $0.25 the prior year.

Commenting on future prospects, Mr. Kathwari continued, “The ‘Great Recession’ has afforded us an opportunity to reinvent and restructure many aspects of our vertically integrated enterprise. While the economic recovery is still in the early stages, we remain cautiously optimistic and continue to take steps to grow our business. In our third quarter ending March 31, 2011, we plan to invest to increase our direct mail advertising by approximately 50% over the prior year. We look forward to discussing in greater detail our initiatives during our upcoming conference call.”

Analyst Conference Call

The Company will conduct a conference call at 11:00 AM (Eastern) on Tuesday, January 25th to discuss the financial results and our business initiatives. The live webcast and replay are accessible via the Company’s website at http://ethanallen.com/investors.

About Ethan Allen

Ethan Allen Interiors Inc. is a leading interior design company and manufacturer and retailer of quality home furnishings. The Company offers free interior design service to its clients and sells a full range of furniture products and decorative accessories through ethanallen.com and a network of approximately 280 Design Centers in the United States and abroad. Ethan Allen owns and operates seven manufacturing facilities in North America, including five manufacturing plants and one sawmill in the United States and one manufacturing plant in Mexico. Approximately seventy-five percent of its products are made in its United States plants. For more information on Ethan Allen’s products and services, visit ethanallen