Ulta Beauty (NASDAQ:ULTA) Stock Price Down 1.2%

Ulta Beauty, Inc. (NASDAQ:ULTA) shares were down 1.2% during trading on Thursday . The company traded as low as $373.00 and last traded at $376.52. Approximately 335,774 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 62% from the average daily volume of 876,262 shares. The stock had previously closed at $380.92.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently commented on ULTA. Canaccord Genuity Group dropped their target price on Ulta Beauty from $575.00 to $522.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, May 29th. Citigroup decreased their target price on shares of Ulta Beauty from $485.00 to $400.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 24th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered 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. TD Cowen reduced their target price on Ulta Beauty from $520.00 to $500.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 31st. Finally, BMO Capital Markets cut their price target on shares of Ulta Beauty from $540.00 to $500.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, May 31st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $494.83.

Ulta Beauty Stock Down 1.5 %

The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $374.56 and a 200-day simple moving average of $432.58. The company has a market cap of $17.90 billion, a PE ratio of 14.70, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.75 and a beta of 1.37.

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Ulta Beauty news, Director Catherine Ann Halligan sold 100 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $390.08, for a total transaction of $39,008.00. Following the sale, the director now directly 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 link. In other Ulta Beauty news, Director Catherine Ann Halligan sold 100 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $390.08, for a total transaction of $39,008.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 2,017 shares in the company, valued at approximately $786,791.36. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Jodi J. Caro sold 650 shares of the 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 directly owns 6,801 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,643,412.68. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.39% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Ulta Beauty in the fourth quarter valued at $263,192,000. Global Assets Advisory LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Ulta Beauty during the 1st quarter worth about $176,753,000. TD Asset Management Inc lifted its stake in Ulta Beauty by 177.8% during the fourth quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 407,347 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $199,596,000 after purchasing an additional 260,740 shares during the last quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Ulta Beauty by 210.4% during the first quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 271,550 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $141,988,000 after purchasing an additional 184,060 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Hsbc Holdings PLC boosted its holdings in Ulta Beauty by 87.3% in the second quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 337,882 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $130,380,000 after purchasing an additional 157,497 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.