Urban Outfitters climbs after saying important sales measurement has improved in 4th quarter

Shares of Urban Outfitters jumped Thursday after the retailer said a key sales measurement has improved since the end of October.

Urban Outfitters said sales at stores open at least a year have gotten stronger. So far those sales are up by a "low single-digit" percentage, the company said in a Securities and Exchange Commission filing. Sales at stores open at least a year are considered an important measurement of retailer health because they leave out results from stores that have opened or closed within the last year.

The Philadelphia company said sales at retail stores open at least a year fell 1 percent in its fiscal third quarter, which ended on Oct. 31.

Shares of Urban Outfitters Inc. climbed $3.48, or 11.6 percent, to $33.49 in morning trading.

In November, Urban Outfitters reported disappointing third-quarter results, as its net income and revenue both fell short of Wall Street expectations. The company said sales at stores open at least a year fell at Urban Outfitters locations but improved at its Free People and Anthropologie chains.

The company has 539 stores under the Urban Outfitters, Anthropologie, Free People, Terrain and Bhldn brands.