Ulta Beauty Inc. $ULTA Stock Holdings Increased by Nippon Life Global Investors Americas Inc.

Key Points

• Nippon Life Global Investors Americas boosted its Ulta stake by 2,120.6% in Q4, adding 28,840 shares to hold 30,200 shares (about 0.07% of the company) worth $18.27 million, part of broad institutional accumulation that leaves 90.39% of the stock owned by institutions.
• Ulta beat quarterly estimates with $8.01 EPS and $3.90 billion in revenue and set FY2026 EPS guidance of 28.05–28.55, underpinning a MarketBeat consensus of "Moderate Buy" and a $674.23 price target despite mixed analyst views and some insider selling.

Nippon Life Global Investors Americas Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Ulta Beauty Inc. (NASDAQ:ULTA - Free Report) by 2,120.6% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 30,200 shares of the specialty retailer's stock after purchasing an additional 28,840 shares during the period. Nippon Life Global Investors Americas Inc. owned approximately 0.07% of Ulta Beauty worth $18,271,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

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

Trending Headlines about Ulta Beauty

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

• Positive Sentiment: Partnership with Google to add AI-powered shopping features could improve customer discovery and e‑commerce conversion, supporting long‑term growth in omnichannel sales. Ulta Beauty, Google partner on AI-powered shopping experiences
• Positive Sentiment: Ulta Beauty World 2026 drew record crowds and spotlighted indie/emerging brands and celebrity tie‑ins — a positive for brand halo, store traffic and wholesale/brand partnerships. Ulta Beauty World draws record crowds and boosts emerging brands
• Positive Sentiment: Company fundamentals remain supportive: recent quarterly results showed a top‑line beat and management set FY2026 EPS guidance (28.05–28.55). That beats/frames street expectations and underpins valuation multiple resilience.
• Neutral Sentiment: Barron’s reexamined ULTA as a previously recommended idea, noting bullish technical indicators (200‑day SMA recovery potential) — useful for technical traders but not new fundamental news. Reexamining Stock Picks Ulta Beauty, Peabody Energy, U-Haul
• Neutral Sentiment: Barclays flagged that an oil price shock could reshape discretionary retail winners and losers; off‑price chains may be more resilient than traditional discretionary merchandisers. This is a sector headwind more than an Ulta‑specific call. Barclays lists retail sector winners and losers in an oil shock
• Neutral Sentiment: Short‑interest data published for April looks anomalous (shows zero shares / NaN change), so it’s not a reliable signal for today’s move; monitor later filings for clarity.
• Negative Sentiment: Market‑reaction pieces note the stock has declined today (around a 1% move), which appears driven by broad market rotation and sector sentiment rather than fresh negative company news. Ulta Beauty (ULTA) Stock Slides as Market Rises: Facts to Know Before You Trade

Ulta Beauty Stock Performance

Shares of ULTA stock opened at $558.55 on Monday. Ulta Beauty Inc. has a 1-year low of $377.58 and a 1-year high of $714.97. The company has a market capitalization of $24.33 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.79, a P/E/G ratio of 2.05 and a beta of 0.95. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $586.53 and its 200-day simple moving average is $588.10.

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 for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $7.93 by $0.08. Ulta Beauty had a return on equity of 43.56% and a net margin of 9.31%.The business had revenue of $3.90 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.81 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $8.46 earnings per share. Ulta Beauty's revenue for the quarter was up 11.8% compared to the same quarter last year. 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 28.4 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ulta Beauty

In other news, Director George R. Mrkonic, Jr. sold 452 shares of Ulta Beauty stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $539.29, for a total transaction of $243,759.08. Following the transaction, the director owned 2,383 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,285,128.07. The trade was a 15.94% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.39% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Barclays lowered Ulta Beauty from an "overweight" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research report on Monday, April 20th. Guggenheim assumed coverage on Ulta Beauty in a research report on Monday, April 20th. They set a "buy" rating on the stock. Raymond James Financial reaffirmed a "strong-buy" rating on shares of Ulta Beauty in a research report on Tuesday, March 10th. Wells Fargo & Company raised Ulta Beauty from a "strong sell" rating to an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, April 20th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised Ulta Beauty from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $635.00 to $700.00 in a research report on Monday, April 20th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eighteen have given a Buy rating, eight have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus 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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