Subprime giant New Century Financial Corp., Irvine, Calif., trimmed its earnings forecast for the year on Friday, its share price falling at least 7% to a new 52-week low.New Century, the nation's second-largest subprime lender, revised downward its earnings-per-share guidance from a range of $8.25-$9.00 to $7.25-$7.75. The company cited continued margin compression in its subprime residential business as the chief reason for the lower earnings projections. It also said the revised guidance does not reflect the impact of potential weather-related losses in the Gulf Coast region, which it said "could be significant." A few weeks ago, New Century closed its commercial mortgage business without explanation.
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