Ulta Beauty Sees Price Target Increase from Stifel Nicolaus

Analysts at Stifel Nicolaus have lifted their price target for Ulta Beauty (NASDAQ:ULTA) from $455.00 to $475.00, as indicated in a report released on Tuesday. Despite this increase, Stifel Nicolaus maintains a "hold" rating on the company's stock. The newly established price target suggests that there is a potential upside of approximately 7.42% based on the stock's previous closing price.

Additional Analyst Commentary

Other firms have also recently provided insights on Ulta Beauty's stock. Citigroup raised its target for Ulta shares from $390.00 to $450.00, giving it a "neutral" rating in a report issued on December 6. Similarly, Canaccord Genuity Group increased their price target from $442.00 to $476.00, providing it with a "buy" rating. On the other hand, TD Cowen reduced their target from $390.00 to $380.00, while maintaining a "hold" rating. Piper Sandler slightly increased their price objective from $390.00 to $394.00, also with a "neutral" rating. Furthermore, Raymond James adjusted their target downwards from $450.00 to $440.00, but retained an "outperform" rating. As it stands, two analysts have rated Ulta Beauty with a sell, twelve have assigned a hold rating, and eleven have given it a buy rating, culminating in a consensus rating of "Hold" with an average price target of $442.96 according to MarketBeat.com.

Market Performance of Ulta Beauty

In market activity, Ulta Beauty shares rose by 2.5%, with prices hitting $442.17 during trading on Tuesday. A total of 755,135 shares changed hands, surpassing the average volume of 634,627 shares. Over the past 52 weeks, Ulta Beauty has experienced a low of $318.17 and a high of $574.76. The company's 50-day simple moving average stands at $398.53, while the 200-day simple moving average is at $383.10. With a market capitalization of $20.50 billion, Ulta has a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.69, a P/E/G ratio of 2.38, and a beta of 1.28.

Recent Earnings Highlights

Ulta Beauty recently announced its earnings for the quarter ending December 5, reporting earnings of $5.14 per share (EPS), which exceeded the consensus estimate of $4.45 by $0.69. The retailer generated revenue of $2.53 billion, outpacing analyst projections of $2.50 billion. Ulta had a return on equity of 51.95% and a net margin of 10.58%. Compared to the same period last year, the revenue saw a year-over-year increase of 1.7%. Analysts are projecting that Ulta Beauty will report an EPS of 23.57 for the current year.

Institutional Investment in Ulta Beauty

In terms of institutional investment, several hedge funds and institutional investors have recently traded Ulta shares. International Assets Investment Management LLC significantly increased its stake in Ulta Beauty during the third quarter, raising its position by a staggering 180,713.0%. The firm now holds 1,238,569 shares valued at approximately $481,952,000 after acquiring an additional 1,237,884 shares. Meanwhile, the Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board took a new position in Ulta Beauty worth $359,480,000. Holocene Advisors LP also boosted its holdings by 3,246.2%, acquiring additional shares in the same period. Other notable investments include Atreides Management LP and Hsbc Holdings PLC. Overall, institutional investors currently own around 90.39% of Ulta Beauty's stock.

Company Overview

Ulta Beauty, Inc is a leading specialty beauty retailer operating in the United States. The company provides a wide range of beauty products, including branded and private label cosmetics, fragrances, haircare, skincare, bath and body products, professional hair products, and salon styling tools, available through Ulta Beauty stores, shop-in-shops, the Ulta.com website, and mobile applications.

Ulta, Earnings, Stock