Ulta Beauty Inc. $ULTA Holdings Decreased by QRG Capital Management Inc.

Key Points

• QRG Capital Management cut its Ulta Beauty stake by 51.6% in the second quarter, selling 3,622 shares and retaining 3,391 shares valued at approximately $1.53 million. Institutional investors collectively own 90.39% of the company.
• Analyst sentiment remains positive, with a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $627.83. Bernstein upgraded the stock to outperform, while Guggenheim initiated coverage with a buy rating.
• Ulta reported stronger-than-expected quarterly results, including $6.55 in EPS and $3.04 billion in revenue, up 8.9% year over year. Separately, CEO Kecia Steelman and director Lorna Nagler sold company shares, while insiders own 0.20% of the stock.

QRG Capital Management Inc. lowered its stake in shares of Ulta Beauty Inc. (NASDAQ:ULTA - Free Report) by 51.6% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 3,391 shares of the specialty retailer's stock after selling 3,622 shares during the quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc.'s holdings in Ulta Beauty were worth $1,529,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Root Financial Partners LLC raised its holdings in shares of Ulta Beauty by 12.1% in the first quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC now owns 167 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $87,000 after buying an additional 18 shares during the last quarter. Nicollet Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Ulta Beauty by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. Nicollet Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,187 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $1,928,000 after buying an additional 22 shares during the last quarter. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Ulta Beauty by 0.6% in the 2nd quarter. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC now owns 3,583 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $1,616,000 after acquiring an additional 23 shares during the period. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. increased its position in shares of Ulta Beauty by 22.6% in the 1st quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. now owns 130 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $68,000 after acquiring an additional 24 shares during the period. Finally, Venturi Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in Ulta Beauty by 3.2% in the 1st quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 809 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $423,000 after acquiring an additional 25 shares during the last quarter. 90.39% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ULTA has been the subject of a number of research reports. Sanford C. Bernstein raised Ulta Beauty to an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 15th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on Ulta Beauty from $750.00 to $631.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, June 3rd. Argus set a $550.00 target price on Ulta Beauty in a report on Thursday, June 18th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "hold (c)" rating on shares of Ulta Beauty in a report on Monday, August 31st. Finally, Guggenheim initiated coverage on Ulta Beauty in a research report on Tuesday, September 15th. They issued a "buy" rating on the stock. Twenty-four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $627.83.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ulta Beauty

In related news, CEO Kecia Steelman sold 2,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $545.88, for a total transaction of $1,091,760.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 40,489 shares in the company, valued at approximately $22,102,135.32. This trade represents a 4.71% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Lorna Nagler sold 600 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $537.31, for a total transaction of $322,386.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 7,168 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,851,438.08. This trade represents a 7.72% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders own 0.20% of the company's stock.

Ulta Beauty Stock Performance

NASDAQ ULTA opened at $545.20 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $23.31 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.87, a PEG ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 0.85. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $530.13 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $515.38. Ulta Beauty Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $443.60 and a fifty-two week high of $714.97.

Ulta Beauty (NASDAQ:ULTA - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, August 27th. The specialty retailer reported $6.55 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $6.22 by $0.33. Ulta Beauty had a return on equity of 45.40% and a net margin of 9.34%.The firm had revenue of $3.04 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.99 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $5.78 earnings per share. The company's revenue was up 8.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Ulta Beauty has set its FY 2026 guidance at 28.700-29.000 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that Ulta Beauty Inc. will post 28.95 earnings per share for the current year.

Ulta Beauty Profile

Ulta Beauty, Inc is a specialty beauty retailer operating under the Ulta Beauty brand. The company sells a broad selection of cosmetics, skincare, haircare, fragrance, bath and body products, and beauty tools across a range of price points. Its merchandise includes both established brands and private-label products, as well as prestige, mass-market and professional beauty offerings.

In addition to retail sales, Ulta Beauty provides services through salon locations within many of its stores, including hair, skin and brow services.

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