BizFeed: Why Urban Outfitters’ Stock Should Rise 36 Percent

Plus: Reddit's new plan to attack trolls.

Urban-Outfitters

1. Buy URBN Right Now

The News: When discussing Urban Outfitters‘ stock (URBN), Jefferies analyst Randal Konik made his opinions very clear — it’s a big buy. In fact, Konik said the stock has the potential to increase by 36 percent and hit $50.

Here are some of his reasons, highlighted in a Barron’s article.

  1. Concerns about Antrhopologie are overblown: “July receipts show an improved mix of dresses with visibly more casual silhouettes & lower prices & we think the mix will continue to improve with the fall assortment.”
  2. The signature Urban Outfitters segment is doing better: “We left Nantucket with increased confidence that steps being taken at Urban Outfitters will drive continued & sustainable improvement.”
  3. Free People is reaching a critical mass: “Though currently a small % of revs, we believe Free People is reaching critical mass esp as it comprises ~1/3 of Urban Outfitters profits.”

Why It Matters: The news sent the stock upward yesterday. It finished 2 percent higher at a price of $36.10. But we’ve heard this before. Back in May, analysts were super-bullish on URBN before it’s earnings call — but the stock took a shocking nosedive.

Still, Konik isn’t the only Wall Street guy who’s bullish on Urban. Mad Money‘s Jim Cramer said after that unexpected price dip that the stock was a strong buy.

2. Reddit’s New Rules Fight Against Trolls

The News: It’s been such a wild week at Reddit (one of our favorite websites), that we couldn’t help but fill you in on the details. After departed CEO Ellen Pao said in a Washington Post op-ed that “the trolls are winning,” new CEO Steve Huffman (who founded Reddit in 2005) instituted new policies against mean and incendiary commenters.

The new policy “would effectively ban spam, illegal activity and harassment, as well as the posting of ‘private or confidential information’ and sexual content involving minors,” said the New York Times. Users would also have to login to see content that violates its code of decency, the Times reported.

CNN Money adds that the new rules are “banning everything from spam to discussions of illegal materials to sexual content featuring minors.”

Why It Matters: Not only is it the classic Silicon Valley story of a founder returning to help save a company, it also says a lot about how we’re expected to behave online going forward. Behind a computer screen and an anonymous handle, people will say plenty that they wouldn’t say face-to-face. Call it the evolution of the “telephone tough guy.” Watching how Reddit polices its trolls will have a big ripple effect in how other sites handle their commenters going forward.

3. How to Deal With a Toxic Colleague

The News: Did you know that just 40 percent of managers would fire a worker who’s hurting team morale? Meanwhile 88 percent of employees would fire that person, according to Fortune.

Why It Matters: It’s simple, people don’t want to deal with a toxic worker. But guess what? You’ll probably have to anyway. So Fortune offers a key tip: communicate with the person — even if your boss won’t.

“Give two or three recent examples of how his negativity or sarcasm has affected you,” said Fortune. An expert, Susan Scott, CEO of leadership development consultants Fierce Inc., said that “if you extend the invitation, you might be surprised at what you’ll hear about what’s bothering him.” It’s not easy but you have to try.