9,000 Shares in Ulta Beauty, Inc. (NASDAQ:ULTA) Bought by Kornitzer Capital Management Inc. KS

Kornitzer Capital Management Inc. KS acquired a new stake in shares of Ulta Beauty, Inc. (NASDAQ:ULTA - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 9,000 shares of the specialty retailer's stock, valued at approximately $4,410,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of ULTA. Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Ulta Beauty during the fourth quarter valued at $25,000. Coppell Advisory Solutions LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Ulta Beauty during the second quarter valued at $26,000. Ancora Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Ulta Beauty during the first quarter valued at $31,000. Fortis Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Ulta Beauty in the first quarter worth about $31,000. Finally, BKM Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Ulta Beauty in the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Institutional investors own 90.39% of the company's stock.

Ulta Beauty Stock Down 2.7 %

Shares of ULTA traded down $11.61 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $413.50. 1,072,899 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,066,920. Ulta Beauty, Inc. has a 1-year low of $368.02 and a 1-year high of $574.76. The company has a market capitalization of $19.96 billion, a PE ratio of 15.87, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 1.30. The business has a 50 day moving average of $511.83 and a 200 day moving average of $468.64.

Ulta Beauty (NASDAQ:ULTA - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, March 14th. The specialty retailer reported $8.08 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $7.49 by $0.59. Ulta Beauty had a net margin of 11.52% and a return on equity of 61.64%. The firm had revenue of $3.55 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.53 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $6.68 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 10.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts expect that Ulta Beauty, Inc. will post 26.74 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ulta Beauty announced that its board has approved a stock buyback program on Thursday, March 14th that authorizes the company to repurchase $2.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the specialty retailer to reacquire up to 7.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are often an indication that the company's management believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Anita Jane Ryan sold 3,102 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $525.25, for a total value of $1,629,325.50. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 2,705 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,420,801.25. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In related news, insider Anita Jane Ryan sold 3,102 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $525.25, for a total value of $1,629,325.50. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 2,705 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,420,801.25. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, COO Kecia Steelman sold 20,950 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $526.39, for a total transaction of $11,027,870.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 10,494 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,523,936.66. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 24,552 shares of company stock worth $12,920,326. 0.34% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently weighed in on ULTA. UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of Ulta Beauty from $575.00 to $690.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 5th. TD Cowen lowered their price objective on shares of Ulta Beauty from $580.00 to $520.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday. Robert W. Baird upped their price objective on shares of Ulta Beauty from $575.00 to $625.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, March 15th. DA Davidson reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $595.00 price objective on shares of Ulta Beauty in a research note on Friday, March 15th. Finally, Loop Capital raised shares of Ulta Beauty from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $540.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Monday, April 8th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, thirteen have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $561.29.

Ulta Beauty Profile

Ulta Beauty, Inc operates as a specialty beauty retailer in the United States. The company offers branded and private label beauty products, including cosmetics, fragrance, haircare, skincare, bath and body products, professional hair products, and salon styling tools through its Ulta Beauty stores, shop-in-shops, Ulta.com website, and its mobile applications.