Earnest Partners LLC Trims Holdings in Ulta Beauty Inc. $ULTA

Key Points

• Earnest Partners trimmed its stake in Ulta Beauty by 2.2%, selling 3,735 shares to hold 165,902 shares worth about $90.7 million, and institutional investors now own roughly 90.39% of the stock.
• Ulta reported a Q4 beat—revenue rose ~11.8% to $3.9B and EPS was $8.01 versus $7.93 expected—but issued a cautious FY2026 outlook and cited rising costs that pressured margins, provoking a heavy selloff with shares down ~14.2%.
• Analysts remain broadly positive overall (average rating: “Moderate Buy”) with an average price target of about $671.27, while the company is pushing digital growth initiatives like AI personalization and a curated TikTok Shop to reach younger customers.

Earnest Partners LLC lessened its stake in Ulta Beauty Inc. (NASDAQ:ULTA - Free Report) by 2.2% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 165,902 shares of the specialty retailer's stock after selling 3,735 shares during the period. Earnest Partners LLC owned about 0.37% of Ulta Beauty worth $90,707,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in ULTA. Swedbank AB lifted its holdings in Ulta Beauty by 6.7% during the 3rd quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 581,506 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $317,938,000 after buying an additional 36,456 shares during the last quarter. Keybank National Association OH increased its holdings in shares of Ulta Beauty by 1.6% in the 3rd quarter. Keybank National Association OH now owns 133,889 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $73,204,000 after acquiring an additional 2,121 shares during the last quarter. Rakuten Investment Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Ulta Beauty during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $71,997,000. Bowen Hanes & Co. Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Ulta Beauty during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $6,012,000. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lifted its stake in Ulta Beauty by 90.1% during the third quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 36,647 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $20,037,000 after purchasing an additional 17,365 shares during the last quarter. 90.39% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on ULTA shares. DA Davidson raised their price target on shares of Ulta Beauty from $625.00 to $650.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, December 5th. Telsey Advisory Group increased their price target on Ulta Beauty from $640.00 to $715.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, March 9th. Robert W. Baird set a $700.00 price objective on Ulta Beauty in a research report on Wednesday, December 17th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on Ulta Beauty from $450.00 to $500.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research note on Monday, March 9th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on Ulta Beauty in a research note on Wednesday, January 14th. They issued a "hold" rating and a $700.00 target price on the stock. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have given a Buy rating, ten have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $671.27.

Key Headlines Impacting Ulta Beauty

Here are the key news stories impacting Ulta Beauty this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q4 top-line beat — net sales rose ~11.8% to about $3.9B, driven by comps and new stores, showing resilient demand. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Digital momentum and new channels: Ulta cites AI-driven personalization boosting e‑commerce and is launching a curated assortment on TikTok Shop to reach younger customers. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: FY2026 outlook shows growth but slower cadence — management guided to mid-single-digit sales growth (roughly 6–7%) and provided an EPS range; the plan signals continued growth but a deceleration from FY25. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Analysts largely keep positive ratings but are trimming price targets after the print — many firms reaffirm buy/overweight while lowering targets to reflect the more cautious margin/advertising outlook. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Margin pressure from rising costs and higher SG&A — operating margin compressed as advertising, incentive compensation and strategic investments increased, squeezing EPS versus last year. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Market disappointed by the forward profit signal — investors viewed the FY26 profit/same-store-sales targets and incremental spending as conservative or risk-increasing, triggering heavy selling and analyst target resets. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: High-volume selloff and volatile sentiment — the post-earnings move has driven large intraday volume and rapid target revisions, increasing short-term downside risk despite longer-term bullish arguments. Read More.

Ulta Beauty Stock Down 14.2%

Shares of NASDAQ ULTA opened at $535.72 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $23.76 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.90, a P/E/G ratio of 2.43 and a beta of 0.82. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $665.60 and its 200 day simple moving average is $587.27. Ulta Beauty Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $323.36 and a fifty-two week high of $714.97.

Ulta Beauty (NASDAQ:ULTA - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, March 12th. The specialty retailer reported $8.01 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $7.93 by $0.08. Ulta Beauty had a net margin of 9.31% and a return on equity of 44.44%. The firm had revenue of $3.90 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.81 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $8.46 EPS. Ulta Beauty's quarterly revenue was up 11.8% on a year-over-year basis. Ulta Beauty has set its FY 2026 guidance at 28.050-28.550 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Ulta Beauty Inc. will post 23.96 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ulta Beauty Profile

Ulta Beauty, Inc NASDAQ: ULTA is a U.S.-based specialty retailer and beauty services provider focused on cosmetics, fragrance, skin care, hair care, bath and body, and beauty tools. The company operates a dual-format business that combines brick-and-mortar retail stores with an e-commerce platform, offering a broad assortment of national, prestige and mass-market brands alongside its own private-label products. In many locations Ulta also provides full-service salon treatments, positioning the company as a one-stop destination for product discovery and in-store services.

The retailer's product mix spans color cosmetics, haircare and styling products, skin and body care, fragrance, and accessories, catering to a wide range of consumer preferences and price points.

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