Jefferies Financial Group Reaffirms Hold Rating for Ulta Beauty (NASDAQ:ULTA)

Ulta Beauty (NASDAQ:ULTA)‘s stock had its “hold” rating reissued by analysts at Jefferies Financial Group in a research report issued to clients and investors on Friday, Marketbeat Ratings reports. They presently have a $438.00 price objective on the specialty retailer’s stock, down from their prior price objective of $585.00. Jefferies Financial Group’s price target would suggest a potential upside of 5.93% from the stock’s previous close.

A number of other equities analysts also recently commented on the company. Piper Sandler decreased their price target on Ulta Beauty from $665.00 to $595.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 9th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on Ulta Beauty from $480.00 to $525.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, March 15th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on Ulta Beauty from $505.00 to $565.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, March 15th. TD Cowen decreased their price target on Ulta Beauty from $580.00 to $520.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday. Finally, Evercore ISI decreased their price target on Ulta Beauty from $656.00 to $635.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, March 15th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, thirteen have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $561.29.

Ulta Beauty Price Performance

Shares of Ulta Beauty stock opened at $413.50 on Friday. The business has a 50-day moving average of $511.83 and a 200-day moving average of $468.13. The company has a market capitalization of $19.96 billion, a PE ratio of 15.87, a P/E/G ratio of 1.75 and a beta of 1.30. Ulta Beauty has a 1-year low of $368.02 and a 1-year high of $574.76.

Ulta Beauty (NASDAQ:ULTA) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, March 14th. The specialty retailer reported $8.08 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $7.49 by $0.59. The company had revenue of $3.55 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.53 billion. Ulta Beauty had a return on equity of 61.64% and a net margin of 11.52%. The company’s revenue was up 10.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $6.68 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts expect that Ulta Beauty will post 26.74 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ulta Beauty announced that its board has authorized a share 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 usually an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Activity

In other news, COO Kecia Steelman sold 20,950 shares of Ulta Beauty stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $526.39, for a total transaction of $11,027,870.50. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 10,494 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,523,936.66. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In related news, insider Anita Jane Ryan sold 3,102 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $525.25, for a total transaction of $1,629,325.50. Following the sale, the insider now owns 2,705 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,420,801.25. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, COO Kecia Steelman sold 20,950 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $526.39, for a total value of $11,027,870.50. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 10,494 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,523,936.66. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 24,552 shares of company stock valued at $12,920,326. Insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ulta Beauty

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Ulta Beauty during the fourth quarter worth approximately $25,000. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P grew its position in Ulta Beauty by 364.3% in the third quarter. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P now owns 65 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 51 shares during the last quarter. Coppell Advisory Solutions LLC acquired a new position in Ulta Beauty in the second quarter worth approximately $26,000. Vima LLC acquired a new position in Ulta Beauty in the fourth quarter worth approximately $27,000. Finally, BKM Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Ulta Beauty in the fourth quarter worth approximately $28,000. Institutional investors 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.