Ulta Beauty (NASDAQ:ULTA) Shares Gap Down – Here’s What Happened

Ulta Beauty, Inc. (NASDAQ:ULTA) gapped down prior to trading on Friday . The stock had previously closed at $401.60, but opened at $390.00. Ulta Beauty shares last traded at $395.28, with a volume of 555,738 shares trading hands.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have issued reports on ULTA shares. Raymond James reduced their target price on shares of Ulta Beauty from $450.00 to $440.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, October 14th. B. Riley raised shares of Ulta Beauty from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $330.00 to $430.00 in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Loop Capital lifted their price target on shares of Ulta Beauty from $450.00 to $480.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, December 9th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on shares of Ulta Beauty from $455.00 to $475.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Finally, Citigroup boosted their target price on shares of Ulta Beauty from $450.00 to $457.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have issued a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $459.22.

Ulta Beauty Stock Performance

The stock has a 50-day moving average of $418.04 and a 200-day moving average of $386.34. The firm has a market cap of $17.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.23, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 1.28.

Ulta Beauty (NASDAQ:ULTA) last released its earnings results on Thursday, December 5th. The specialty retailer reported $5.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.45 by $0.69. Ulta Beauty had a return on equity of 51.95% and a net margin of 10.58%. The business had revenue of $2.53 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.50 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $5.07 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.7% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts predict that Ulta Beauty, Inc. will post 23.96 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of ULTA. Paladin Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in Ulta Beauty during the 3rd quarter valued at $32,000. Sunbelt Securities Inc. raised its stake in shares of Ulta Beauty by 118.4% during the third quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. now owns 83 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 45 shares in the last quarter. Westside Investment Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Ulta Beauty by 151.5% during the third quarter. Westside Investment Management Inc. now owns 83 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. Edge Capital Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Ulta Beauty during the fourth quarter valued at $33,000. Finally, Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd purchased a new stake in Ulta Beauty in the third quarter valued at $41,000. Institutional investors 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.