Ulta Beauty (NASDAQ:ULTA) Upgraded to “Hold” at StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Ulta Beauty (NASDAQ:ULTA) from a sell rating to a hold rating in a report released on Wednesday.

Other analysts have also recently issued reports about the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on Ulta Beauty from $530.00 to $544.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a research note on Friday, May 31st. DA Davidson reduced their price target on shares of Ulta Beauty from $507.00 to $435.00 and set a buy rating for the company in a research report on Friday, August 30th. UBS Group lowered their target price on shares of Ulta Beauty from $550.00 to $505.00 and set a buy rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, August 30th. B. Riley began coverage on Ulta Beauty in a report on Tuesday, September 10th. They set a sell rating and a $300.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Piper Sandler reissued a neutral rating and issued a $356.00 price objective (down from $404.00) on shares of Ulta Beauty in a research note on Friday, August 30th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of Hold and an average price target of $425.29.

Ulta Beauty Trading Down 0.3 %

Shares of ULTA opened at $402.01 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $19.18 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.68, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.22 and a beta of 1.31. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $368.01 and its 200 day moving average price is $407.97. Ulta Beauty has a 12-month low of $318.17 and a 12-month high of $574.76.

Ulta Beauty (NASDAQ:ULTA) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 29th. The specialty retailer reported $5.30 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.47 by ($0.17). Ulta Beauty had a net margin of 10.68% and a return on equity of 54.02%. The company had revenue of $2.55 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.61 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $6.02 earnings per share. Ulta Beauty’s revenue was up .9% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts forecast that Ulta Beauty will post 23.21 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other Ulta Beauty news, insider Jodi J. Caro sold 650 shares of Ulta Beauty stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $388.68, for a total value of $252,642.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 6,801 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,643,412.68. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other news, insider Jodi J. Caro sold 650 shares of Ulta Beauty stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $388.68, for a total value of $252,642.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 6,801 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,643,412.68. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Catherine Ann Halligan sold 100 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $390.08, for a total transaction of $39,008.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 2,017 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $786,791.36. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.39% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Ulta Beauty

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Anchor Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in Ulta Beauty by 191.2% in the 2nd quarter. Anchor Investment Management LLC now owns 198 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $76,000 after buying an additional 130 shares in the last quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund acquired a new position in shares of Ulta Beauty in the second quarter worth about $8,759,000. University of Texas Texas AM Investment Management Co. boosted its holdings in Ulta Beauty by 90.9% in the second quarter. University of Texas Texas AM Investment Management Co. now owns 168 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $65,000 after purchasing an additional 80 shares during the last quarter. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. grew its stake in Ulta Beauty by 6.0% during the 2nd quarter. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 1,055 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $407,000 after purchasing an additional 60 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sanctuary Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Ulta Beauty during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $1,500,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.39% of the company’s stock.

Ulta Beauty Company Profile

Ulta Beauty, Inc operates as a specialty beauty retailer in the United States. The company offers branded and private label beauty products, including cosmetics, fragrance, haircare, skincare, bath and body products, professional hair products, and salon styling tools through its Ulta Beauty stores, shop-in-shops, Ulta.com website, and its mobile applications.