Harel Insurance Investments & Financial Services Ltd. Lowers Holdings in Ulta Beauty, Inc. (NASDAQ:ULTA)

Harel Insurance Investments & Financial Services Ltd. reduced its stake in Ulta Beauty, Inc. (NASDAQ:ULTA) by 60.2% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 711 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after selling 1,077 shares during the period. Harel Insurance Investments & Financial Services Ltd.’s holdings in Ulta Beauty were worth $274,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of ULTA. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Ulta Beauty in the 4th quarter worth approximately $263,192,000. Global Assets Advisory LLC bought a new position in shares of Ulta Beauty during the first quarter valued at $176,753,000. TD Asset Management Inc boosted its position in shares of Ulta Beauty by 177.8% during the fourth quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 407,347 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $199,596,000 after buying an additional 260,740 shares during the last quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Ulta Beauty by 210.4% in the 1st quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 271,550 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $141,988,000 after buying an additional 184,060 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Boston Partners raised its position in Ulta Beauty by 47.7% in the 1st quarter. Boston Partners now owns 476,027 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $246,862,000 after buying an additional 153,727 shares during the last quarter. 90.39% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Ulta Beauty Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ ULTA traded down $4.19 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $372.87. 731,910 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 870,474. Ulta Beauty, Inc. has a 1 year low of $318.17 and a 1 year high of $574.76. The company’s 50-day moving average is $375.12 and its two-hundred day moving average is $433.91. The company has a market capitalization of $17.79 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.66, a PEG ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 1.37.

Ulta Beauty (NASDAQ:ULTA) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 30th. The specialty retailer reported $6.47 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.19 by $0.28. The business had revenue of $2.73 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.72 billion. Ulta Beauty had a return on equity of 58.06% and a net margin of 11.13%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 3.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $6.88 earnings per share. Equities analysts anticipate that Ulta Beauty, Inc. will post 25.65 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on ULTA. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on shares of Ulta Beauty from $350.00 to $325.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 24th. Citigroup lowered their price objective on Ulta Beauty from $485.00 to $400.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 24th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Ulta Beauty from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 18th. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their price objective on shares of Ulta Beauty from $475.00 to $412.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, August 12th. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $500.00 price target on shares of Ulta Beauty in a research note on Friday, July 19th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $494.83.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Jodi J. Caro sold 650 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $388.68, for a total value of $252,642.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 6,801 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,643,412.68. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, Director Catherine Ann Halligan sold 100 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction 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 completion of the transaction, the director now owns 2,017 shares in the company, valued at approximately $786,791.36. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Jodi J. Caro sold 650 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $388.68, for a total value of $252,642.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 6,801 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,643,412.68. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.39% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Ulta Beauty 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.