Alyeska Investment Group L.P. Sells 203,220 Shares of Ulta Beauty, Inc. (NASDAQ:ULTA)

Alyeska Investment Group L.P. trimmed its holdings in shares of Ulta Beauty, Inc. (NASDAQ:ULTA - Free Report) by 39.4% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 312,722 shares of the specialty retailer's stock after selling 203,220 shares during the quarter. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. owned 0.67% of Ulta Beauty worth $136,012,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the business. Capital World Investors purchased a new stake in Ulta Beauty during the fourth quarter worth about $430,674,000. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Ulta Beauty during the 4th quarter worth approximately $239,432,000. Marshall Wace LLP raised its holdings in shares of Ulta Beauty by 10,336.7% in the 4th quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 459,110 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $199,681,000 after purchasing an additional 454,711 shares during the period. Proficio Capital Partners LLC purchased a new position in Ulta Beauty in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $58,074,000. Finally, Victory Capital Management Inc. grew its holdings in Ulta Beauty by 364.6% during the fourth quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 159,053 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $69,177,000 after purchasing an additional 124,822 shares during the period. 90.39% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Ulta Beauty Stock Performance

Shares of ULTA stock traded down $7.15 on Tuesday, hitting $387.14. 548,549 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,052,167. The stock has a market capitalization of $17.48 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.49, a P/E/G ratio of 0.89 and a beta of 1.06. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $361.76 and its 200 day simple moving average is $383.71. Ulta Beauty, Inc. has a one year low of $309.01 and a one year high of $460.00.

Ulta Beauty (NASDAQ:ULTA - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, March 13th. The specialty retailer reported $8.46 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $7.13 by $1.33. The company had revenue of $3.49 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.47 billion. Ulta Beauty had a return on equity of 51.95% and a net margin of 10.58%. Ulta Beauty's quarterly revenue was down 1.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $8.08 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Ulta Beauty, Inc. will post 23.96 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently commented on the company. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price target on Ulta Beauty from $475.00 to $400.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, March 14th. DA Davidson reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $415.00 price target on shares of Ulta Beauty in a research report on Wednesday, April 16th. TD Cowen upped their price target on shares of Ulta Beauty from $450.00 to $480.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Citigroup reduced their price objective on shares of Ulta Beauty from $405.00 to $365.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, March 17th. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group dropped their target price on Ulta Beauty from $538.00 to $526.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, March 14th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have given a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Ulta Beauty currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $427.17.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Jodi J. Caro sold 902 shares of Ulta Beauty stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $369.16, for a total value of $332,982.32. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 7,632 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,817,429.12. This trade represents a 10.57 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.39% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Ulta Beauty 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.