Ulta Beauty Inc. (NASDAQ:ULTA) Given Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Shares of Ulta Beauty Inc. (NASDAQ:ULTA) have received an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the twenty-seven ratings firms that are presently covering the company, Marketbeat Ratings reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, twelve have given a hold recommendation, thirteen have issued a buy recommendation and one has issued a strong buy recommendation on the company. The average 12-month price objective among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $550.3750.

Several research analysts have recently commented on ULTA shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Ulta Beauty from $525.00 to $600.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, August 22nd. UBS Group raised their price target on Ulta Beauty from $640.00 to $680.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, August 29th. Raymond James Financial reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $605.00 price objective (up from $580.00) on shares of Ulta Beauty in a research report on Friday, August 29th. Loop Capital reiterated a “hold” rating and issued a $510.00 price objective on shares of Ulta Beauty in a report on Friday, July 25th. Finally, Citigroup raised their target price on shares of Ulta Beauty from $450.00 to $550.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, August 18th.

Insider Transactions at Ulta Beauty

In other Ulta Beauty news, Director Mike C. Smith sold 500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $528.43, for a total transaction of $264,215.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 2,263 shares in the company, valued at $1,195,837.09. This trade represents a 18.10% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.17% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ulta Beauty

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in Ulta Beauty in the 3rd quarter valued at $25,000. Cary Street Partners Investment Advisory LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Ulta Beauty by 107.7% during the second quarter. Cary Street Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 54 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 28 shares in the last quarter. Grey Fox Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Ulta Beauty in the third quarter valued at about $31,000. Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Ulta Beauty in the third quarter valued at about $31,000. Finally, Hemington Wealth Management grew its stake in shares of Ulta Beauty by 142.9% in the second quarter. Hemington Wealth Management now owns 68 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 40 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 90.39% of the company’s stock.

Ulta Beauty Stock Performance

Shares of ULTA stock opened at $517.79 on Friday. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $530.57 and its 200-day moving average is $487.40. The stock has a market cap of $23.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.85, a PEG ratio of 2.80 and a beta of 1.05. Ulta Beauty has a 52-week low of $309.01 and a 52-week high of $572.23.

Ulta Beauty (NASDAQ:ULTA) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 28th. The specialty retailer reported $5.78 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.03 by $0.75. The business had revenue of $2.79 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.66 billion. Ulta Beauty had a return on equity of 48.78% and a net margin of 10.31%.Ulta Beauty’s quarterly revenue was up 9.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $5.30 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that Ulta Beauty will post 23.96 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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.