** Shares of luxury brand Burberry BRBY.L rise 4.7% to 1,276 pence, top gainer on FTSE 100 index .FTSE

** Co beats expectations for sales growth in key holiday quarter, with third-quarter comparable sales up 3% vs analyst expectations of +2%, according to co-compiled consensus

** Forecasts operating profit to be in line with consensus for FY26, which on an average is 149 million pounds ($200.21 million)

** "China has become such a key market for Burberry that today's lift in sales in the region will no doubt give management a bit more confidence that the Burberry Forward strategy is kicking in," says Dan Lane, lead analyst at Robinhood UK

** Comparable store sales in Greater China up 6% in third quarter

** As of last close, stock down 3.9% YTD, while FTSE 100 up ~2%

($1 = 0.7442 pounds)

(Reporting by DhanushVignesh Babu in Bengaluru)

((DhanushVignesh.Babu@thomsonreuters.com))