Ulta Beauty, Inc. (NASDAQ:ULTA) Shares Purchased by LGT Group Foundation

LGT Group Foundation boosted its holdings in shares of Ulta Beauty, Inc. (NASDAQ:ULTA) by 17.6% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 31,867 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after acquiring an additional 4,765 shares during the period. LGT Group Foundation owned about 0.07% of Ulta Beauty worth $15,514,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the business. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Ulta Beauty by 4.3% in the 3rd quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. now owns 535 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $214,000 after purchasing an additional 22 shares during the period. Pinnacle Associates Ltd. raised its holdings in Ulta Beauty by 0.8% in the fourth quarter. Pinnacle Associates Ltd. now owns 2,828 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $1,386,000 after buying an additional 23 shares during the period. AllSquare Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in Ulta Beauty by 24.5% during the third quarter. AllSquare Wealth Management LLC now owns 127 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $51,000 after buying an additional 25 shares in the last quarter. Huntington National Bank grew its stake in Ulta Beauty by 1.4% during the third quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 1,820 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $727,000 after buying an additional 26 shares during the period. Finally, Phoenix Wealth Advisors increased its position in shares of Ulta Beauty by 2.6% in the third quarter. Phoenix Wealth Advisors now owns 1,106 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $442,000 after acquiring an additional 28 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.39% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently weighed in on ULTA. Jefferies Financial Group restated a “hold” rating and set a $438.00 target price (down previously from $585.00) on shares of Ulta Beauty in a report on Friday, April 19th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on Ulta Beauty from $450.00 to $350.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 24th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their target price on Ulta Beauty from $574.00 to $627.00 in a report on Friday, March 15th. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on Ulta Beauty from $480.00 to $525.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, March 15th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of Ulta Beauty from $535.00 to $600.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 15th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating, twelve have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $548.05.

Ulta Beauty Stock Performance

Shares of ULTA traded down $4.44 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $397.67. 176,205 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 759,886. Ulta Beauty, Inc. has a 12 month low of $368.02 and a 12 month high of $574.76. The stock has a market capitalization of $19.06 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.44, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.66 and a beta of 1.36. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $492.28 and its 200-day moving average price is $469.32.

Ulta Beauty (NASDAQ:ULTA) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, March 14th. The specialty retailer reported $8.08 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $7.49 by $0.59. Ulta Beauty had a return on equity of 61.64% and a net margin of 11.52%. The company had revenue of $3.55 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.53 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $6.68 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts anticipate that Ulta Beauty, Inc. will post 26.55 EPS for the current year.

Ulta Beauty declared that its board has authorized a stock buyback plan on Thursday, March 14th that allows the company to buyback $2.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the specialty retailer to reacquire up to 7.3% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are generally an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ulta Beauty

In other news, insider Anita Jane Ryan sold 3,102 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $525.25, for a total value of $1,629,325.50. Following the sale, the insider now owns 2,705 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,420,801.25. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In other news, Director Catherine Ann Halligan sold 500 shares of the 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 completion of the sale, the director now owns 1,665 shares in the company, valued at $876,222.90. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Anita Jane Ryan sold 3,102 shares of Ulta Beauty stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $525.25, for a total value of $1,629,325.50. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 2,705 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,420,801.25. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 24,552 shares of company stock valued at $12,920,326. 0.34% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.