Ulta Beauty (NASDAQ:ULTA) Rating Increased to Buy at Bank of America

Key Points

• Bank of America upgraded Ulta from "neutral" to "buy" and set a $685 target price, implying roughly a 32.24% upside from the company's current price.
• Analyst consensus remains positive with one Strong Buy, 19 Buys, seven Holds and one Sell, producing an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $674.23.
• Ulta beat quarterly estimates (EPS $8.01 vs. $7.93; revenue $3.90B vs. $3.81B), reported revenue up 11.8% year-over-year, and issued FY2026 guidance of 28.05–28.55 EPS.

Ulta Beauty (NASDAQ:ULTA - Get Free Report) was upgraded by stock analysts at Bank of America from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating in a note issued to investors on Tuesday, Marketbeat Ratings reports. The brokerage currently has a $685.00 target price on the specialty retailer's stock. Bank of America's price objective suggests a potential upside of 32.24% from the company's current price.

Several other equities analysts have also recently weighed in on the company. Raymond James Financial restated a "strong-buy" rating on shares of Ulta Beauty in a report on Tuesday, March 10th. Canaccord Genuity Group lifted their target price on Ulta Beauty from $674.00 to $799.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, March 10th. Evercore set a $725.00 target price on Ulta Beauty in a report on Wednesday, March 11th. Oppenheimer dropped their target price on Ulta Beauty from $750.00 to $650.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Friday, March 13th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upgraded Ulta Beauty from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $635.00 to $700.00 in a report on Monday, April 20th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nineteen have issued a Buy rating, seven have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Ulta Beauty currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $674.23.

Ulta Beauty Price Performance

NASDAQ ULTA opened at $518.00 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $22.56 billion, a PE ratio of 20.21, a P/E/G ratio of 1.95 and a beta of 0.89. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $573.99 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $587.76. Ulta Beauty has a 1-year low of $386.00 and a 1-year high of $714.97.

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

Insider Activity at Ulta Beauty

In other news, Director George R. Mrkonic, Jr. sold 452 shares of Ulta Beauty stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $539.29, for a total value of $243,759.08. Following the completion of 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 position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.39% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ulta Beauty

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Keybank National Association OH lifted its stake in shares of Ulta Beauty by 1.6% during the 3rd quarter. Keybank National Association OH now owns 133,889 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $73,204,000 after acquiring an additional 2,121 shares during the last quarter. Rakuten Investment Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Ulta Beauty during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $71,997,000. Bowen Hanes & Co. Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Ulta Beauty during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $6,012,000. Allianz Asset Management GmbH lifted its stake in shares of Ulta Beauty by 979.1% during the 3rd quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH now owns 74,201 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $40,569,000 after acquiring an additional 67,325 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Cookson Peirce & Co. Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Ulta Beauty during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $1,008,000. 90.39% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Ulta Beauty Company Profile

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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