Ulta Beauty Inc. $ULTA Shares Purchased by Pacer Advisors Inc.

Key Points

• Pacer Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in Ulta Beauty by 198.7% in the fourth quarter, bringing its holdings to 10,707 shares valued at about $6.48 million.
• Ulta Beauty’s stock was down 2.6% and opened at $492.14, well below its 52-week high of $714.97. The company has a market cap of $21.44 billion and trades under both its 50-day and 200-day moving averages.
• Ulta recently beat earnings and revenue estimates, reporting $8.01 EPS on $3.90 billion in revenue, while analysts remain broadly positive with a Moderate Buy consensus and an average price target of $674.23.

Pacer Advisors Inc. increased its position in shares of Ulta Beauty Inc. (NASDAQ:ULTA - Free Report) by 198.7% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 10,707 shares of the specialty retailer's stock after purchasing an additional 7,122 shares during the quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc.'s holdings in Ulta Beauty were worth $6,478,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of ULTA. Holocene Advisors LP raised its holdings in Ulta Beauty by 339.6% during the third quarter. Holocene Advisors LP now owns 379,939 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $207,732,000 after purchasing an additional 293,516 shares during the last quarter. Andra AP fonden raised its holdings in shares of Ulta Beauty by 351,900.0% in the third quarter. Andra AP fonden now owns 228,800 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $125,096,000 after acquiring an additional 228,735 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of Ulta Beauty by 33.6% in the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 840,383 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $459,479,000 after acquiring an additional 211,485 shares during the last quarter. Caisse de depot et placement du Quebec raised its holdings in shares of Ulta Beauty by 249.8% in the third quarter. Caisse de depot et placement du Quebec now owns 295,833 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $161,747,000 after acquiring an additional 211,266 shares during the last quarter. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Ulta Beauty by 76.6% in the second quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 477,504 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $222,794,000 after acquiring an additional 207,084 shares during the last quarter. 90.39% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Ulta Beauty

In other Ulta Beauty news, Director George R. Mrkonic, Jr. sold 452 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $539.29, for a total transaction of $243,759.08. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 2,383 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,285,128.07. The trade was a 15.94% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 0.17% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Ulta Beauty Stock Down 2.6%

Shares of NASDAQ:ULTA opened at $492.14 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $21.44 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.20, a P/E/G ratio of 1.76 and a beta of 0.89. Ulta Beauty Inc. has a 52 week low of $402.50 and a 52 week high of $714.97. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $550.87 and a 200-day simple moving average of $587.21.

Ulta Beauty (NASDAQ:ULTA - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, March 12th. The specialty retailer reported $8.01 EPS 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 the consensus estimate of $3.81 billion. Ulta Beauty had a return on equity of 43.56% and a net margin of 9.31%.The business's revenue for the quarter was up 11.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $8.46 earnings per share. Ulta Beauty has set its FY 2026 guidance at 28.050-28.550 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that Ulta Beauty Inc. will post 28.45 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on ULTA. Bank of America raised Ulta Beauty from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $685.00 price target for the company in a report on Tuesday, May 5th. DA Davidson reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $650.00 price target on shares of Ulta Beauty in a report on Tuesday, April 14th. Wedbush began coverage on Ulta Beauty in a report on Monday, April 20th. They issued an "outperform" rating for the company. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on Ulta Beauty from $750.00 to $700.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Friday, March 13th. Finally, Oppenheimer cut their price target on Ulta Beauty from $750.00 to $650.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Friday, March 13th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nineteen have given a Buy rating, seven have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Ulta Beauty presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $674.23.

Ulta Beauty Company 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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