Cosmetic products retailer Sally Beauty Holdings Inc said its largest shareholder Clayton, Dubilier & Rice LLC was exiting its holding in the company, sending its shares down 9 percent in after-market trading.

Photo: Sally Beauty

Investment funds associated with Clayton, Dubilier & Rice LLC are selling 23.1 million Sally Beauty shares, or about 12 percent of shares outstanding, in a secondary stock offering, the company said in a statement.

Sally Beauty, which offers products for hair, skin, and nails under labels such as Clairol, L'Oreal, Wella and Conair, also estimated disappointing sales for the third quarter on Tuesday.

The company said sales are expected to rise 6 percent to about $887.0 million, below analysts' estimates of $900.1 million, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.

Sally Beauty, which competes with Ulta Beauty (ULTA.O), estimated earnings of 38 cents per share for the period, slightly higher than analysts' expectations of 37 cents per share.

Shares of the Texas-based company were down at $24.67 in after-market trading. They closed at $27.09 on the New York Stock Exchange.