Ulta Beauty Inc. (NASDAQ:ULTA) Sees Large Drop in Short Interest

Ulta Beauty Inc. (NASDAQ:ULTA) saw a large drop in short interest during the month of August. As of August 31st, there was short interest totaling 1,760,000 shares, a drop of 21.1% from the August 15th total of 2,230,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 734,100 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 2.4 days. Approximately 3.9% of the shares of the company are short sold. Approximately 3.9% of the shares of the company are short sold. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 734,100 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 2.4 days.

Insider Transactions at Ulta Beauty

In other Ulta Beauty news, Director Mike C. Smith sold 500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $528.43, for a total transaction of $264,215.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 2,263 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,195,837.09. This trade represents a 18.10% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.17% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ulta Beauty

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in ULTA. Cary Street Partners Investment Advisory LLC raised its position in Ulta Beauty by 107.7% during the second quarter. Cary Street Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 54 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 28 shares during the period. American National Bank & Trust acquired a new position in Ulta Beauty during the first quarter worth $29,000. Wayfinding Financial LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Ulta Beauty during the first quarter worth $31,000. Hemington Wealth Management raised its position in shares of Ulta Beauty by 142.9% in the second quarter. Hemington Wealth Management now owns 68 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 40 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Rakuten Securities Inc. raised its position in shares of Ulta Beauty by 218.5% in the first quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 86 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 59 shares during the last quarter. 90.39% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Ulta Beauty Price Performance

ULTA opened at $534.81 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $513.15 and a 200 day moving average price of $441.96. Ulta Beauty has a 1 year low of $309.01 and a 1 year high of $539.00. The stock has a market cap of $23.98 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.51, a P/E/G ratio of 2.91 and a beta of 1.06.

Ulta Beauty (NASDAQ:ULTA) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, August 28th. The specialty retailer reported $5.78 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $5.03 by $0.75. Ulta Beauty had a net margin of 10.31% and a return on equity of 48.78%. The firm had revenue of $2.79 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.66 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $5.30 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 9.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts expect that Ulta Beauty will post 23.96 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ULTA has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Piper Sandler initiated coverage on shares of Ulta Beauty in a research report on Thursday, September 4th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $590.00 price target for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of Ulta Beauty from $525.00 to $600.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, August 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of Ulta Beauty from $400.00 to $425.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Friday, August 29th. UBS Group raised their price target on shares of Ulta Beauty from $640.00 to $680.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, August 29th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised their price target on shares of Ulta Beauty from $425.00 to $550.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 26th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Ulta Beauty currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $543.13.

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.