PHILADELPHIA, United States— Urban Outfitters Inc. shares surged as much as 20 percent in late trading after its Free People and Anthropologie chains performed better than predicted, helping offset a slump at its flagship business.

Earnings in the quarter were 44 cents a share, the company said Tuesday. That topped the 36 cent-average of projections. While net sales fell to $872.9 million, the result still handily exceeded estimates.

In delivering the results, chief executive officer Richard Hayne highlighted “encouraging fashion apparel trends,” which could help boost the company’s performance in future quarters. Hayne has been working to improve sales in a retail environment plagued by store closures, slow fashion trends and discount-hungry shoppers. The chain has been investing in growing internationally, improving digital offerings and expanding its wholesale market, but progress has been slow.

This quarter showed some improvement as same-store sales, a key metric, also topped estimates. While they declined 4.9 percent in the period, the result wasn’t as bad as the 6.4 percent drop seen on Wall Street, according to Consensus Metrix. Free People, which contributes about 20 percent of total revenue, saw same-store sales climb 2.9 percent, the only brand that saw growth in the quarter.

Anthropologie’s same-store sales dropped 4 percent, though that was far better than the 8.1 percent seen by analysts. The company’s namesake brand saw that metric fall 7.9 percent, slightly worse than projections.

Urban Outfitters shares rose as high as $20.25 in extended trading in New York after the announcement. The stock had plunged 41 percent this year through the close of trading Tuesday.

By Lindsey Rupp; Editors: Nick Turner, Lisa Wolfson.