Ulta Beauty (NASDAQ:ULTA) Given New $350.00 Price Target at Wells Fargo & Company

Ulta Beauty (NASDAQ:ULTA) had its price objective lowered by equities researchers at Wells Fargo & Company from $450.00 to $350.00 in a report released on Wednesday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an “underweight” rating on the specialty retailer’s stock. Wells Fargo & Company‘s target price would indicate a potential downside of 14.22% from the stock’s previous close.

Several other research analysts also recently weighed in on ULTA. Oppenheimer reduced their price target on shares of Ulta Beauty from $600.00 to $500.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 4th. DA Davidson reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $595.00 price objective on shares of Ulta Beauty in a report on Friday, March 15th. Raymond James cut their price objective on shares of Ulta Beauty from $630.00 to $610.00 and set a “strong-buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 3rd. 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 report on Thursday, February 15th. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on shares of Ulta Beauty from $480.00 to $525.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, March 15th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, thirteen have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Ulta Beauty currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $556.52.

Ulta Beauty Stock Down 0.6 %

ULTA opened at $408.01 on Wednesday. Ulta Beauty has a twelve month low of $368.02 and a twelve month high of $574.76. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $502.70 and a 200 day moving average price of $468.22. The company has a market cap of $19.69 billion, a PE ratio of 15.66, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 1.30.

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

Ulta Beauty declared that its board has authorized a share buyback program on Thursday, March 14th that authorizes the company to buyback $2.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the specialty retailer to buy up to 7.3% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are generally a sign that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling

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

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ulta Beauty

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Nordea Investment Management AB boosted its position in Ulta Beauty by 347.3% in the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 71,491 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $35,061,000 after buying an additional 55,508 shares during the period. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Ulta Beauty in the 4th quarter valued at $1,810,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Ulta Beauty by 0.8% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 284,442 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $113,620,000 after purchasing an additional 2,126 shares in the last quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund raised its holdings in shares of Ulta Beauty by 6.5% in the 4th quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund now owns 27,037 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $13,248,000 after purchasing an additional 1,662 shares in the last quarter. Finally, AdvisorNet Financial Inc raised its holdings in shares of Ulta Beauty by 3.4% in the 4th quarter. AdvisorNet Financial Inc now owns 1,188 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $582,000 after purchasing an additional 39 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.39% of the company’s stock.

About Ulta Beauty

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.