Ulta Beauty, Inc. (NASDAQ:ULTA) Shares Purchased by Advisors Capital Management LLC

Advisors Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Ulta Beauty, Inc. (NASDAQ:ULTA) by 0.5% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 34,743 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after buying an additional 158 shares during the quarter. Advisors Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Ulta Beauty were worth $15,111,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Ulta Beauty during the 4th quarter worth approximately $239,432,000. Proficio Capital Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Ulta Beauty in the fourth quarter valued at $58,074,000. Victory Capital Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Ulta Beauty by 364.6% in the fourth quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 159,053 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $69,177,000 after purchasing an additional 124,822 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its holdings in Ulta Beauty by 258.3% during the 4th quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 126,190 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $54,884,000 after purchasing an additional 90,972 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Edge Capital Group LLC purchased a new stake in Ulta Beauty during the 4th quarter worth $33,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.39% of the company’s stock.

Ulta Beauty Price Performance

Shares of ULTA opened at $361.46 on Monday. The company has a market cap of $16.38 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.46, a PEG ratio of 0.89 and a beta of 1.16. Ulta Beauty, Inc. has a 12 month low of $309.01 and a 12 month high of $460.00. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $360.13 and a 200 day moving average price of $383.29.

Ulta Beauty (NASDAQ:ULTA) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, March 13th. The specialty retailer reported $8.46 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $7.13 by $1.33. The business had revenue of $3.49 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.47 billion. Ulta Beauty had a net margin of 10.58% and a return on equity of 51.95%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $8.08 EPS. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Ulta Beauty, Inc. will post 23.96 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on ULTA shares. Canaccord Genuity Group decreased their price objective on shares of Ulta Beauty from $538.00 to $526.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, March 14th. Bank of America reduced their price target on Ulta Beauty from $475.00 to $380.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Friday, March 14th. The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded Ulta Beauty from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $384.00 to $423.00 in a report on Tuesday, April 1st. TD Cowen increased their target price on Ulta Beauty from $450.00 to $480.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets dropped their price target on shares of Ulta Beauty from $467.00 to $404.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, March 14th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have given a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $427.61.

Insider Activity at Ulta Beauty

In related news, insider Jodi J. Caro sold 902 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $369.16, for a total transaction of $332,982.32. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 7,632 shares in the company, valued at $2,817,429.12. This trade represents a 10.57 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.39% of the company’s stock.

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.