Shares of The Finish Line (FINL - Free Report) surged more than 7% in morning trading Friday after the athletic shoe retailer posted mixed first-quarter earnings results. Nevertheless, investors were encouraged by the struggling company’s full-year guidance—and that could be good news for sneaker makers like Nike (NKE - Free Report) , Under Armour (UAA - Free Report) , and Adidas (ADDYY - Free Report).

Finish Line Results

For the first quarter, Finish Line reported adjusted earnings of 23 cents per share (excluding three cents from non-recurring items), matching the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 23 cents. Additionally, quarterly revenues of $429.8 million were slightly lower than our consensus estimate of $431.6 million, and comparable-store sales slumped about 1.1%.

Even still, the company said that it expects full-year earnings in the range of $1.12 to $1.23 per share. This range falls on the higher end of the Zacks Consensus Estimate, which currently stands at $1.14 per share—a result that would mark year-over-year EPS growth of nearly 8%.

“We delivered earnings in-line with our expectations despite some unanticipated headwinds late in the quarter,” said CEO Sam Sato. “Following low-single digit comparable sales growth for the combined March/April period, weak traffic trends, and a difficult product launch comparison in May resulted in comps coming in below plan.”

Sato continued: “While the retail environment remains challenging, we continue to be confident that our merchandising, digital, in-store, and operational initiatives underway will help fuel profitable growth beginning in the back half of this fiscal year, better positioning the company to deliver increased shareholder value over the long-term.”

Heading into the day, shares of FINL were down more than 33% year-to-date. It’s been a tough year for niche athletic retailers across the board, as Foot Locker (FL - Free Report) shares have dropped more than 32% and Zumiez (ZUMZ - Free Report) has slumped more than 46%.

Impact on Sneaker Makers

Things have been tough for the retail chains, and that means the sneaker makers have struggled as well. Under Armour has plunged more than 30% so far this year, while Nike has moved a sluggish 3.5% higher. Adidas has actually been a surprising winner, gaining a solid 21% year-to-date.

Regardless, investors are displaying mixed opinions on whether Finish Line’s guidance was good enough to have a major impact on these companies. NKE was up a measly 0.3% through morning trading, while ADDYY actually lost about 0.3%. However, the news somewhat ignited Under Armour shares, as UAA gained about 1.3% in morning trading.

Looking ahead, it will take a lot more than performance at stores like Finish Line to help Nike and Under Armour. For one, these apparel makers will need online success—an outcome that Nike is apparently seeking to deliver through direct sales on Amazon.com (AMZN - Free Report) (also read: Nike May Start Selling Directly to Amazon, Sports Retail Stocks Decline).