Ulta Beauty Inc. $ULTA Shares Sold by Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC

Key Points

• Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC cut its Ulta stake by 47.6% in Q4, selling 4,691 shares and leaving the firm with 5,162 shares valued at about $3.12 million.
• Ulta beat quarterly expectations (EPS $8.01 vs. $7.93; revenue $3.90B vs. $3.81B), reported 11.8% YoY revenue growth, and set FY2026 EPS guidance of 28.05–28.55 (consensus ~28.44).
• Institutions own 90.39% of Ulta, with notable positioning changes (e.g., Nippon Life ↑ to 30,200 shares; Pictet holds 236,983 shares), and analysts maintain a "Moderate Buy" consensus with an average price target of $674.23.

Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC decreased its position in shares of Ulta Beauty Inc. (NASDAQ:ULTA - Free Report) by 47.6% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 5,162 shares of the specialty retailer's stock after selling 4,691 shares during the quarter. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC's holdings in Ulta Beauty were worth $3,123,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. RMR Wealth Builders boosted its position in shares of Ulta Beauty by 5.9% during the 4th quarter. RMR Wealth Builders now owns 1,036 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $627,000 after acquiring an additional 58 shares during the last quarter. Nippon Life Global Investors Americas Inc. lifted its position in Ulta Beauty by 2,120.6% in the fourth quarter. Nippon Life Global Investors Americas Inc. now owns 30,200 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $18,271,000 after buying an additional 28,840 shares during the last quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. acquired a new position in Ulta Beauty in the fourth quarter valued at about $206,000. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA lifted its position in Ulta Beauty by 3.2% in the fourth quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA now owns 236,983 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $143,377,000 after buying an additional 7,380 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Verdence Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Ulta Beauty in the fourth quarter valued at about $229,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.39% of the company's stock.

Ulta Beauty Stock Performance

Shares of ULTA opened at $538.15 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $23.44 billion, a PE ratio of 21.00, a P/E/G ratio of 1.98 and a beta of 0.95. Ulta Beauty Inc. has a 1 year low of $377.63 and a 1 year high of $714.97. The company's 50-day simple moving average is $580.28 and its 200-day simple moving average is $587.87.

Ulta Beauty (NASDAQ:ULTA - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, March 12th. The specialty retailer reported $8.01 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $7.93 by $0.08. The business had revenue of $3.90 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.81 billion. Ulta Beauty had a net margin of 9.31% and a return on equity of 43.56%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 11.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $8.46 earnings per share. Ulta Beauty has set its FY 2026 guidance at 28.050-28.550 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Ulta Beauty Inc. will post 28.44 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director George R. Mrkonic, Jr. sold 452 shares of the 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 sale, the director owned 2,383 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,285,128.07. This represents a 15.94% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.39% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have commented on ULTA shares. Canaccord Genuity Group upped their target price on shares of Ulta Beauty from $674.00 to $799.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 10th. Piper Sandler reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and issued a $725.00 target price (down from $775.00) on shares of Ulta Beauty in a research report on Friday, March 13th. Raymond James Financial reaffirmed a "strong-buy" rating on shares of Ulta Beauty in a research report on Tuesday, March 10th. TD Cowen began coverage on shares of Ulta Beauty in a research report on Monday, April 20th. They issued a "buy" rating on the stock. Finally, Zacks Research cut shares of Ulta Beauty from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, February 6th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eighteen have assigned a Buy rating, eight have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $674.23.

About Ulta Beauty

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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