Ulta Beauty, Inc. (NASDAQ:ULTA) Shares Purchased by Bender Robert & Associates

Bender Robert & Associates lifted its stake in shares of Ulta Beauty, Inc. (NASDAQ:ULTA) by 1.1% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 26,222 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 282 shares during the quarter. Ulta Beauty accounts for 3.2% of Bender Robert & Associates’ holdings, making the stock its 9th biggest holding. Bender Robert & Associates owned approximately 0.05% of Ulta Beauty worth $12,849,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Bradley Foster & Sargent Inc. CT lifted its holdings in Ulta Beauty by 1.6% during the 4th quarter. Bradley Foster & Sargent Inc. CT now owns 1,260 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $591,000 after buying an additional 20 shares during the period. Pathstone Family Office LLC lifted its stake in shares of Ulta Beauty by 0.8% in the fourth quarter. Pathstone Family Office LLC now owns 2,852 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $1,338,000 after acquiring an additional 22 shares during the period. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Ulta Beauty by 4.3% in the third quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. now owns 535 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $214,000 after acquiring an additional 22 shares during the period. Wetherby Asset Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Ulta Beauty by 4.9% in the first quarter. Wetherby Asset Management Inc. now owns 491 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $268,000 after acquiring an additional 23 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Pinnacle Associates Ltd. increased its position in Ulta Beauty by 0.8% during the 4th quarter. Pinnacle Associates Ltd. now owns 2,828 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $1,386,000 after purchasing an additional 23 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 90.39% of the company’s stock.

Ulta Beauty Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:ULTA traded up $0.56 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $425.11. 821,996 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 768,472. Ulta Beauty, Inc. has a 12 month low of $368.02 and a 12 month high of $574.76. The company has a market cap of $20.52 billion, a PE ratio of 16.30, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.75 and a beta of 1.30. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $515.89 and a 200-day moving average price of $467.84.

Ulta Beauty (NASDAQ:ULTA) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, March 14th. The specialty retailer reported $8.08 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $7.49 by $0.59. The firm had revenue of $3.55 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.53 billion. Ulta Beauty had a return on equity of 61.64% and a net margin of 11.52%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $6.68 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that Ulta Beauty, Inc. will post 26.74 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ulta Beauty announced that its Board of Directors has approved a stock repurchase 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 shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are typically an indication that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ULTA has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their price objective on shares of Ulta Beauty from $574.00 to $627.00 in a research note on Friday, March 15th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on Ulta Beauty from $400.00 to $450.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Friday, March 15th. Piper Sandler lowered their price objective on Ulta Beauty from $665.00 to $595.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 9th. Telsey Advisory Group restated an “outperform” rating and set a $600.00 target price on shares of Ulta Beauty in a research report on Friday, March 15th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group lowered their target price on Ulta Beauty from $610.00 to $585.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating, fourteen have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $568.29.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Anita Jane Ryan sold 3,102 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $525.25, for a total transaction of $1,629,325.50. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 2,705 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,420,801.25. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, insider Anita Jane Ryan sold 3,102 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $525.25, for a total transaction of $1,629,325.50. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 2,705 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,420,801.25. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Catherine Ann Halligan sold 500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $526.26, for a total value of $263,130.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 1,665 shares in the company, valued at approximately $876,222.90. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 24,552 shares of company stock valued at $12,920,326 in the last three months. 0.34% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.