Ulta Beauty (NASDAQ:ULTA) Shares Down 4% Following Analyst Downgrade

Ulta Beauty, Inc. (NASDAQ:ULTA)’s stock price traded down 4% during mid-day trading on Monday after DA Davidson lowered their price target on the stock from $507.00 to $435.00. DA Davidson currently has a buy rating on the stock. Ulta Beauty traded as low as $342.00 and last traded at $352.84. 4,999,700 shares changed hands during trading, an increase of 445% from the average session volume of 917,843 shares. The stock had previously closed at $367.58.

Several other analysts have also recently commented on ULTA. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their price target on Ulta Beauty from $475.00 to $412.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Monday, August 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Ulta Beauty from $530.00 to $544.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, May 31st. Evercore ISI lowered their price target on shares of Ulta Beauty from $500.00 to $430.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, August 26th. Barclays raised their price objective on shares of Ulta Beauty from $328.00 to $335.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group decreased their price objective on shares of Ulta Beauty from $522.00 to $500.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, August 27th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Ulta Beauty has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $436.83.

Insider Transactions at Ulta Beauty

In other Ulta Beauty news, Director Catherine Ann Halligan sold 100 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $390.08, for a total value of $39,008.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 2,017 shares in the company, valued at approximately $786,791.36. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In other news, insider Jodi J. Caro sold 650 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $388.68, for a total transaction 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 transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director Catherine Ann Halligan sold 100 shares of Ulta Beauty stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $390.08, for a total value of $39,008.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 2,017 shares in the company, valued at approximately $786,791.36. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.39% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ulta Beauty

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Savant Capital LLC increased its position in shares of Ulta Beauty by 30.2% during the fourth quarter. Savant Capital LLC now owns 1,436 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $704,000 after acquiring an additional 333 shares during the last quarter. Great Valley Advisor Group Inc. grew its stake in Ulta Beauty by 25.7% during the 4th quarter. Great Valley Advisor Group Inc. now owns 1,334 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $654,000 after purchasing an additional 273 shares in the last quarter. First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. purchased a new stake in Ulta Beauty during the 4th quarter worth approximately $320,000. Natixis Advisors L.P. increased its holdings in Ulta Beauty by 53.5% during the 4th quarter. Natixis Advisors L.P. now owns 70,594 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $34,589,000 after purchasing an additional 24,608 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. raised its position in shares of Ulta Beauty by 95.9% in the 4th quarter. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. now owns 143 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $70,000 after purchasing an additional 70 shares in the last quarter. 90.39% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Ulta Beauty Stock Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $16.84 billion, a PE ratio of 13.76, a PEG ratio of 1.86 and a beta of 1.37. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $372.21 and a 200 day moving average price of $424.67.

Ulta Beauty (NASDAQ:ULTA) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 29th. The specialty retailer reported $5.30 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.47 by ($0.17). The company had revenue of $2.55 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.61 billion. Ulta Beauty had a net margin of 10.68% and a return on equity of 54.91%. The company’s revenue was up .9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $6.02 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts forecast that Ulta Beauty, Inc. will post 23.03 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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.