Ulta Beauty (NASDAQ:ULTA) Announces Quarterly Earnings Results, Beats Expectations By $0.83 EPS

Key Points

• Ulta Beauty beat quarterly earnings expectations, reporting $7.74 per share versus the $6.91 consensus estimate, a beat of $0.83.
• Revenue also came in above forecasts at $3.16 billion, slightly ahead of the $3.12 billion analysts expected.
• The stock fell after the report, with ULTA trading down $5.84 to $494.93 during Tuesday trading despite the earnings beat.

Ulta Beauty (NASDAQ:ULTA - Get Free Report) released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday. The specialty retailer reported $7.74 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $6.91 by $0.83, FiscalAI reports. Ulta Beauty had a return on equity of 43.56% and a net margin of 9.31%.The company had revenue of $3.16 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.12 billion.

Ulta Beauty Stock Performance

ULTA stock traded down $5.84 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $494.93. The company's stock had a trading volume of 936,154 shares, compared to its average volume of 675,259. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $525.01 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $585.92. Ulta Beauty has a 1 year low of $452.00 and a 1 year high of $714.97. The firm has a market capitalization of $21.56 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.58, a PEG ratio of 1.66 and a beta of 0.86.

Insider Activity at Ulta Beauty

In other news, Director George R. Mrkonic, Jr. sold 452 shares of the firm's 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. This trade represents a 15.94% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.39% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ulta Beauty

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Sivia Capital Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Ulta Beauty during the second quarter valued at $466,000. Parallax Volatility Advisers L.P. purchased a new position in shares of Ulta Beauty during the third quarter valued at $422,000. Mattson Financial Services LLC increased its stake in shares of Ulta Beauty by 47.5% during the fourth quarter. Mattson Financial Services LLC now owns 686 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $415,000 after buying an additional 221 shares during the period. Ark Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Ulta Beauty during the fourth quarter valued at $370,000. Finally, Shay Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Ulta Beauty during the second quarter valued at $351,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.39% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently weighed in on ULTA. Raymond James Financial restated a "strong-buy" rating on shares of Ulta Beauty in a report on Tuesday, March 10th. Wedbush assumed coverage on Ulta Beauty in a research note on Monday, April 20th. They issued an "outperform" rating on the stock. Oppenheimer reduced their target price on Ulta Beauty from $750.00 to $650.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, March 13th. Evercore set a $725.00 target price on Ulta Beauty in a research note on Wednesday, March 11th. Finally, UBS Group reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $810.00 target price on shares of Ulta Beauty in a research note on Friday, March 13th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nineteen have given a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $687.95.

Key Ulta Beauty News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Canaccord Genuity reiterated a Buy rating on Ulta Beauty and kept a $799 price target, citing confidence in the company’s growth and margin outlook. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts are looking for another solid quarter, with estimates calling for roughly $3.08 billion to $3.12 billion in revenue and about $6.87 to $6.89 in EPS, which has helped keep expectations constructive ahead of the report. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Ulta has also been highlighted as a potential winner in the ongoing debate between luxury vs. value beauty spending, with some investors seeing room for the company to benefit if consumers keep trading toward more accessible premium beauty products. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Ulta is scheduled to report first-quarter results on June 2, so trading may remain volatile until investors see whether sales trends, delivery expansion, and margin performance meet expectations. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Jim Cramer also pointed to a recent analyst price target cut on Ulta, a reminder that some Wall Street views have become more cautious heading into earnings. Article Title

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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