Ulta Beauty, Inc. (NASDAQ:ULTA – Get Free Report) gapped up prior to trading on Friday following a better than expected earnings announcement. The stock had previously closed at $385.58, but opened at $421.21. Ulta Beauty shares last traded at $389.34, with a volume of 598,046 shares traded.
The specialty retailer reported $6.47 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $6.19 by $0.28. Ulta Beauty had a net margin of 11.52% and a return on equity of 61.64%. The business had revenue of $2.73 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.72 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $6.88 earnings per share. Ulta Beauty’s revenue was up 3.5% compared to the same quarter last year.
Ulta Beauty announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Thursday, March 14th that authorizes the company to repurchase $2.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the specialty retailer to purchase up to 7.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.
Wall Street Analyst Weigh In
A number of research firms have commented on ULTA. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on Ulta Beauty from $480.00 to $525.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, March 15th. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price target on Ulta Beauty from $565.00 to $475.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, May 14th. Canaccord Genuity Group reduced their price objective on shares of Ulta Beauty from $575.00 to $522.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday. Telsey Advisory Group restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $500.00 target price on shares of Ulta Beauty in a research report on Friday. Finally, Piper Sandler reduced their price target on shares of Ulta Beauty from $505.00 to $498.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating, thirteen have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Ulta Beauty currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $507.30.
Check Out Our Latest Research Report on Ulta Beauty
Insider Activity at Ulta Beauty
In other Ulta Beauty news, COO Kecia Steelman sold 20,950 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $526.39, for a total transaction of $11,027,870.50. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 10,494 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,523,936.66. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other Ulta Beauty news, Director Catherine Ann Halligan sold 500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $526.26, for a total value of $263,130.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 1,665 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $876,222.90. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, COO Kecia Steelman sold 20,950 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $526.39, for a total transaction of $11,027,870.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 10,494 shares in the company, valued at $5,523,936.66. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 24,552 shares of company stock worth $12,920,326 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.39% of the company’s stock.
Institutional Trading of Ulta Beauty
Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Ulta Beauty in the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P lifted its position in shares of Ulta Beauty by 364.3% during the 3rd quarter. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P now owns 65 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 51 shares during the last quarter. Vima LLC bought a new position in shares of Ulta Beauty during the 4th quarter worth $27,000. BKM Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Ulta Beauty in the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. Finally, VisionPoint Advisory Group LLC lifted its holdings in Ulta Beauty by 7,300.0% during the third quarter. VisionPoint Advisory Group LLC now owns 74 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 73 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 90.39% of the company’s stock.
Ulta Beauty Stock Up 2.5 %
The stock has a market cap of $18.94 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.17, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.60 and a beta of 1.36. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $424.32 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $470.11.
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.
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