North Dakota State Investment Board Invests $1.26 Million in Ulta Beauty Inc. $ULTA

Key Points

• North Dakota State Investment Board opened a new position in Ulta Beauty in the fourth quarter, buying 2,077 shares worth about $1.26 million.
• Institutional ownership remains very high, with 90.39% of Ulta Beauty’s stock held by hedge funds and other institutional investors, and several large firms recently increased their stakes.
• Analysts are mixed but generally positive: Ulta has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” with an average price target of $687.95, while recent quarterly results beat earnings and revenue estimates.

North Dakota State Investment Board bought a new position in Ulta Beauty Inc. (NASDAQ:ULTA - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm bought 2,077 shares of the specialty retailer's stock, valued at approximately $1,257,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Ulta Beauty by 0.4% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 5,376,848 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $3,253,047,000 after purchasing an additional 23,434 shares during the period. State Street Corp lifted its position in shares of Ulta Beauty by 2.3% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,975,260 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $1,079,973,000 after purchasing an additional 44,182 shares during the period. Sanders Capital LLC lifted its position in shares of Ulta Beauty by 8.9% in the 3rd quarter. Sanders Capital LLC now owns 1,263,820 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $690,994,000 after purchasing an additional 103,540 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. lifted its position in shares of Ulta Beauty by 33.6% in the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 840,383 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $459,479,000 after purchasing an additional 211,485 shares during the period. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its position in shares of Ulta Beauty by 7.5% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 626,093 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $342,316,000 after purchasing an additional 43,458 shares during the period. 90.39% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on ULTA shares. William Blair reissued a "market perform" rating on shares of Ulta Beauty in a research report on Monday, March 9th. Wedbush started coverage on shares of Ulta Beauty in a research report on Monday, April 20th. They set an "outperform" rating for the company. Piper Sandler reissued an "overweight" rating and set a $725.00 price target (down from $775.00) on shares of Ulta Beauty in a research report on Friday, March 13th. DA Davidson reissued a "buy" rating and set a $650.00 price target on shares of Ulta Beauty in a research report on Tuesday, April 14th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a "hold (c)" rating on shares of Ulta Beauty in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nineteen have given a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $687.95.

Ulta Beauty Stock Performance

NASDAQ:ULTA opened at $481.56 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $20.98 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.79, a P/E/G ratio of 1.67 and a beta of 0.89. Ulta Beauty Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $402.50 and a fifty-two week high of $714.97. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $537.34 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $586.43.

Ulta Beauty (NASDAQ:ULTA - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, March 12th. The specialty retailer reported $8.01 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $7.93 by $0.08. The business had revenue of $3.90 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.81 billion. Ulta Beauty had a net margin of 9.31% and a return on equity of 43.56%. Ulta Beauty's revenue was up 11.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business earned $8.46 EPS. Ulta Beauty has set its FY 2026 guidance at 28.050-28.550 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that Ulta Beauty Inc. will post 28.47 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Ulta Beauty news, Director George R. Mrkonic, Jr. sold 452 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $539.29, for a total transaction of $243,759.08. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 2,383 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,285,128.07. This trade represents a 15.94% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.39% of the company's stock.

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.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding ULTA? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Ulta Beauty Inc. (NASDAQ:ULTA - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.