Ulta Beauty (NASDAQ:ULTA) Stock Crosses Above 200 Day Moving Average - Here's Why

Key Points

• Ulta Beauty shares moved above their 200-day moving average of $514.01, trading as high as $554.19 and last changing hands at $545.48.
• Analyst sentiment remains favorable, with 24 Buy ratings and eight Holds, producing a “Moderate Buy” consensus and an average price target of $627.83.
• The company exceeded quarterly expectations, reporting $6.55 in EPS and $3.04 billion in revenue, while revenue grew 8.9% year over year; however, the CEO and a director recently sold shares.

Ulta Beauty Inc. (NASDAQ:ULTA - Get Free Report) shares crossed above its two hundred day moving average during trading on Wednesday. The stock has a two hundred day moving average of $514.01 and traded as high as $554.19. Ulta Beauty shares last traded at $545.48, with a volume of 321,724 shares.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $650.00 price objective on shares of Ulta Beauty in a research note on Friday, August 28th. Raymond James Financial lowered Ulta Beauty from a "strong-buy" rating to a "moderate buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, September 15th. Royal Bank Of Canada raised Ulta Beauty to an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 15th. Guggenheim assumed coverage on Ulta Beauty in a research report on Tuesday, September 15th. They set a "buy" rating for the company. Finally, Barclays lowered their target price on Ulta Beauty from $647.00 to $645.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, August 28th. Twenty-four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $627.83.

Ulta Beauty Trading Down 0.3%

The firm's fifty day moving average price is $539.24 and its 200-day moving average price is $514.01. The company has a market cap of $23.32 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.88, a P/E/G ratio of 1.64 and a beta of 0.84.

Ulta Beauty (NASDAQ:ULTA - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 27th. The specialty retailer reported $6.55 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $6.22 by $0.33. Ulta Beauty had a return on equity of 45.40% and a net margin of 9.34%.The firm had revenue of $3.04 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.99 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $5.78 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was up 8.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Ulta Beauty has set its FY 2026 guidance at 28.700-29.000 EPS. As a group, research analysts forecast that Ulta Beauty Inc. will post 28.95 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ulta Beauty

In other news, Director Lorna Nagler sold 600 shares of Ulta Beauty stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $537.31, for a total transaction of $322,386.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 7,168 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,851,438.08. The trade was a 7.72% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Kecia Steelman sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $545.88, for a total transaction of $1,091,760.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 40,489 shares of the company's stock, valued at $22,102,135.32. This trade represents a 4.71% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 0.20% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in ULTA. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC lifted its position in Ulta Beauty by 97.3% during the 1st quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 35,739 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $18,681,000 after purchasing an additional 17,625 shares during the period. Oxbow Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Ulta Beauty in the 1st quarter valued at about $3,024,000. Vise Technologies Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Ulta Beauty during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $1,033,000. Tidal Investments LLC grew its position in shares of Ulta Beauty by 34.6% during the 2nd quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 17,553 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $7,916,000 after buying an additional 4,513 shares during the period. Finally, Beacon Pointe Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Ulta Beauty during the second quarter worth approximately $8,311,000. 90.39% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Ulta Beauty

Ulta Beauty, Inc is a specialty beauty retailer that operates stores and an e-commerce platform in the United States. The company offers a broad assortment of prestige and mass-market beauty products, including cosmetics, skincare, haircare products, fragrances, bath and body items, and beauty tools.

In addition to merchandise, Ulta Beauty provides salon services such as hair styling, hair treatments, and related services at many of its locations. Its stores typically combine product retailing with salon operations and may also offer beauty services provided by licensed professionals.

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