Short Interest in Urban Outfitters, Inc. (NASDAQ:URBN) Expands By 856.3%

Key Points

• Urban Outfitters, Inc. (NASDAQ:URBN) experienced an extraordinary increase in short interest of 856.3% in July, bringing the total to 11,380,000 shares, or 20.4% of the company's stock sold short.
• The company reported $1.16 EPS for the last quarter, exceeding analysts' expectations of $0.81 and showing a 10.7% increase in revenue year-over-year.
• Investment analysts have varied opinions on Urban Outfitters, with seven buy ratings and one strong buy rating, while the average target price is set at $75.00.

Urban Outfitters, Inc. (NASDAQ:URBN - Get Free Report) saw a significant growth in short interest in the month of July. As of July 15th, there was short interest totaling 11,380,000 shares, agrowthof856.3% from the June 30th total of 1,190,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 2,100,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 5.4 days. Approximately20.4% of the company's shares are short sold. Approximately20.4% of the company's shares are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 2,100,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 5.4 days.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Wall Street Zen downgraded Urban Outfitters from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded Urban Outfitters from an "underperform" rating to a "hold" rating and upped their price target for the stock from $50.00 to $70.00 in a report on Friday, June 6th. BMO Capital Markets set a $76.00 price target on Urban Outfitters and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a report on Thursday, May 22nd. Glj Research restated a "sell" rating on shares of Urban Outfitters in a report on Thursday, May 22nd. Finally, Bank of America upped their price target on Urban Outfitters from $70.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, May 22nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Urban Outfitters currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $75.00.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Margaret Hayne sold 80,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.59, for a total value of $5,807,200.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 100 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,259. The trade was a 99.88% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Tricia D. Smith sold 4,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.52, for a total value of $317,340.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 13,477 shares in the company, valued at $950,398.04. This represents a 25.03% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 159,156 shares of company stock valued at $11,636,158. 31.80% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Urban Outfitters

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. American Century Companies Inc. raised its stake in shares of Urban Outfitters by 11.2% during the 1st quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 2,322,526 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $121,700,000 after buying an additional 233,371 shares in the last quarter. Junto Capital Management LP raised its stake in shares of Urban Outfitters by 16.5% during the 1st quarter. Junto Capital Management LP now owns 1,728,447 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $90,571,000 after buying an additional 244,801 shares in the last quarter. Fuller & Thaler Asset Management Inc. increased its stake in Urban Outfitters by 27.6% in the 1st quarter. Fuller & Thaler Asset Management Inc. now owns 1,397,175 shares of the apparel retailer's stock valued at $73,212,000 after purchasing an additional 302,444 shares in the last quarter. Nuveen LLC purchased a new position in Urban Outfitters in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $43,769,000. Finally, Wedge Capital Management L L P NC purchased a new position in Urban Outfitters in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $40,544,000. 77.61% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Urban Outfitters Trading Up 1.2%

Shares of NASDAQ URBN traded up $0.93 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $76.21. The stock had a trading volume of 2,036,002 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,725,288. The firm has a market cap of $6.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.94, a PEG ratio of 1.31 and a beta of 1.44. Urban Outfitters has a fifty-two week low of $33.86 and a fifty-two week high of $78.22. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $71.87 and a 200-day moving average of $60.20.

Urban Outfitters (NASDAQ:URBN - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, May 21st. The apparel retailer reported $1.16 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.81 by $0.35. The firm had revenue of $1.33 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.29 billion. Urban Outfitters had a return on equity of 17.98% and a net margin of 7.91%. The business's revenue was up 10.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.69 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that Urban Outfitters will post 3.91 EPS for the current year.

About Urban Outfitters

Urban Outfitters, Inc engages in the retail and wholesale of general consumer products. The company operates through three segments: Retail, Wholesale, and Nuuly. It operates Urban Outfitters stores, which offer women's and men's fashion apparel, activewear, intimates, footwear, accessories, home goods, electronics, and beauty products for young adults aged 18 to 28; and Anthropologie stores that provide women's apparel, accessories, intimates, shoes, and home furnishings, as well as gifts, decorative items, and beauty and wellness products for women aged 28 to 45.