Piper Jaffray Reiterates Urban Outfiters' Neutral Rating

In a report published by Piper Jaffray, Urban Outfitters' URBN post-holiday slowdown weighs on its FQ4 gross margin.

Piper Jaffray said that it is reiterating its Neutral rating on URBN shares following the company's FQ4 report in which same-store sales and gross margin fell short of Piper's estimates. “Sales trends deteriorated as the quarter progressed, and while management indicated that sales in February improved relative to January, it appears that the current sales trend remains in-line with the disappointing FQ4 results. We continue to believe Urban Outfitters is a compelling long-term growth story, however we remain on the sidelines for now, as operating margin gains will likely be limited by slower sales, thus weighing on earnings growth.”

Urban Outfitters closed yesterday at $37.99.