Shares of Urban Outfitters Inc. URBN rallied nearly 9% in the extended session Tuesday after the retailer reported better-than-expected quarterly profits and sales. Urban said it earned $53 million, or 56 cents a share, in its first quarter, compared with $32 million, or 33 cents a share, in the year-ago quarter. Sales rose 6% to $1.11 billion, which the company called a “record.” Analysts polled by FactSet expected the company to report earnings of 35 cents a share on sales of $1.09 billion. A rise in retail-segment comparable sales was driven by “high single-digit” growth in digital sales and “low single-digit” growth in store sales, the company said. “We are pleased to report record first-quarter sales and earnings per share driven by a 5% increase in comparable retail-segment sales, strong growth in (subscription clothing rental brand Nuuly Rent) and a significant improvement in gross margins,” CEO Richard A. Hayne said in a statement. Urban Outfitters ended the regular trading day down 1.4%.
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