Ulta Beauty Inc. $ULTA Shares Bought by Janney Montgomery Scott LLC

Key Points

• Janney Montgomery Scott LLC nearly doubled its Ulta Beauty stake in the first quarter, buying 17,625 additional shares to bring its total to 35,739 shares worth about $18.7 million.
• Ulta reported strong quarterly results, with earnings of $7.74 per share and revenue of $3.16 billion, both above analyst expectations. Revenue rose 11.1% year over year, and the company guided FY2026 EPS to 28.36-28.80.
• Despite the earnings beat, the stock was down 1.8% and trades near its 12-month low, while analysts remain mostly positive with a consensus Moderate Buy rating and an average price target of $638.09.

Janney Montgomery Scott LLC boosted its holdings in Ulta Beauty Inc. (NASDAQ:ULTA - Free Report) by 97.3% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 35,739 shares of the specialty retailer's stock after purchasing an additional 17,625 shares during the period. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC owned about 0.08% of Ulta Beauty worth $18,681,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Focus Partners Wealth lifted its stake in Ulta Beauty by 231.6% during the first quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 3,744 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $1,372,000 after purchasing an additional 2,615 shares during the last quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Ulta Beauty by 48.9% during the first quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 4,795 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $1,758,000 after purchasing an additional 1,574 shares during the period. Sivia Capital Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Ulta Beauty in the 2nd quarter worth about $466,000. Jump Financial LLC bought a new position in shares of Ulta Beauty in the 2nd quarter worth about $1,196,000. Finally, Daiwa Securities Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Ulta Beauty by 0.9% in the 2nd quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 7,475 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $3,497,000 after buying an additional 70 shares during the period. 90.39% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Ulta Beauty Stock Down 1.8%

NASDAQ:ULTA opened at $450.98 on Wednesday. The company's 50 day moving average is $499.42 and its 200-day moving average is $575.33. Ulta Beauty Inc. has a 12 month low of $443.60 and a 12 month high of $714.97. The firm has a market cap of $19.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.91, a P/E/G ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 0.86.

Ulta Beauty (NASDAQ:ULTA - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, June 2nd. The specialty retailer reported $7.74 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $6.89 by $0.85. The firm had revenue of $3.16 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.12 billion. Ulta Beauty had a return on equity of 44.77% and a net margin of 9.36%.The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 11.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $6.70 EPS. Ulta Beauty has set its FY 2026 guidance at 28.360-28.800 EPS. Research analysts predict that Ulta Beauty Inc. will post 28.76 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently commented on the company. Wedbush started coverage on Ulta Beauty in a report on Monday, April 20th. They set an "outperform" rating for the company. Guggenheim assumed coverage on Ulta Beauty in a report on Monday, April 20th. They issued a "buy" rating on the stock. UBS Group reduced their price target on shares of Ulta Beauty from $810.00 to $735.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, June 3rd. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on Ulta Beauty from $700.00 to $630.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, June 3rd. Finally, Loop Capital reiterated a "hold" rating and issued a $550.00 target price on shares of Ulta Beauty in a research report on Wednesday, June 3rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nineteen have issued a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $638.09.

Key Stories Impacting Ulta Beauty

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

• Positive Sentiment: Ulta is highlighting the strength of its customer base, with management saying more than 95% of sales come from loyalty members. The company is using AI and loyalty data to personalize shopping, deepen engagement, and improve its digital experience, which supports customer retention and long-term sales. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Ulta’s loyalty program remains a key competitive advantage, helping the retailer target personalized offers and keep customers spending within its ecosystem. That kind of recurring engagement can help offset a tougher retail backdrop. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Some coverage was purely promotional or brand-focused, including a story about a new K-beauty-inspired cushion foundation available at Ulta, which may help traffic but is unlikely to move the stock on its own. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Another article noted one of Ulta’s busiest stores is in South Texas, which is a positive store-level anecdote but not a major market-moving catalyst. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Target is replacing Ulta shop-in-shop locations with its own Beauty Studio in more than 600 stores, reinforcing that the Ulta-Target partnership is ending and removing a source of distribution and brand visibility. Investors may see this as a headwind for future sales growth. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Additional reporting on the Target-Ulta breakup likely keeps attention on the loss of the shop-in-shop partnership, which may pressure sentiment even as Ulta emphasizes its own standalone digital and loyalty strengths. Article Title

Insider Transactions at Ulta Beauty

In other news, Director George R. Mrkonic, Jr. sold 383 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $475.84, for a total value of $182,246.72. Following the sale, the director directly owned 2,404 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,143,919.36. This represents a 13.74% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 0.39% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.

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.