Ulta Beauty (NASDAQ:ULTA) Downgraded by StockNews.com to Hold

Ulta Beauty (NASDAQ:ULTA – Get Rating) was downgraded by analysts at StockNews.com from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report released on Wednesday.

A number of other equities analysts have also recently commented on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of Ulta Beauty to $535.00 in a research report on Monday, November 28th. Robert W. Baird boosted their target price on shares of Ulta Beauty from $500.00 to $550.00 in a research report on Friday, December 2nd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their target price on shares of Ulta Beauty from $589.00 to $607.00 in a research report on Friday, December 2nd. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on shares of Ulta Beauty from $445.00 to $510.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, Citigroup boosted their target price on shares of Ulta Beauty from $480.00 to $500.00 in a research report on Friday, December 2nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, thirteen have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $514.95.

Ulta Beauty Price Performance

ULTA stock opened at $494.59 on Wednesday. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $461.25 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $423.27. Ulta Beauty has a one year low of $330.80 and a one year high of $495.89. The stock has a market cap of $25.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.74, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.56 and a beta of 1.29.

Ulta Beauty (NASDAQ:ULTA – Get Rating) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, December 1st. The specialty retailer reported $5.34 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.09 by $1.25. Ulta Beauty had a net margin of 12.26% and a return on equity of 68.33%. The firm had revenue of $2.34 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.21 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $3.94 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 17.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts anticipate that Ulta Beauty will post 22.87 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of Ulta Beauty

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in ULTA. CI Investments Inc. boosted its holdings in Ulta Beauty by 1,016.7% in the third quarter. CI Investments Inc. now owns 67 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 61 shares during the last quarter. Private Capital Group LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Ulta Beauty by 265.0% during the 2nd quarter. Private Capital Group LLC now owns 73 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 53 shares in the last quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust boosted its holdings in shares of Ulta Beauty by 59.1% during the 1st quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 70 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 26 shares in the last quarter. Global Trust Asset Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Ulta Beauty during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $30,000. Finally, AllSquare Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Ulta Beauty by 188.5% during the 3rd quarter. AllSquare Wealth Management LLC now owns 75 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 49 shares in the last quarter. 90.47% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Ulta Beauty

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Ulta Beauty, Inc operates as a retailer of beauty products in the United States. The company's stores offer cosmetics, fragrances, skincare and haircare products, bath and body products, and salon styling tools; professional hair products; salon services, including hair, skin, makeup, and brow services; and nail services.