Ulta Beauty, Inc. (NASDAQ:ULTA) Shares Acquired by Van ECK Associates Corp

Van ECK Associates Corp boosted its stake in shares of Ulta Beauty, Inc. (NASDAQ:ULTA) by 20.5% in the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 18,398 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 3,129 shares during the quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp’s holdings in Ulta Beauty were worth $7,099,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. MUFG Securities EMEA plc bought a new stake in Ulta Beauty in the second quarter valued at $7,061,000. Banque Cantonale Vaudoise increased its holdings in shares of Ulta Beauty by 302.4% in the 2nd quarter. Banque Cantonale Vaudoise now owns 1,529 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $590,000 after acquiring an additional 1,149 shares during the period. Lafayette Investments Inc. lifted its position in Ulta Beauty by 6.6% in the 2nd quarter. Lafayette Investments Inc. now owns 4,806 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $1,854,000 after purchasing an additional 298 shares during the last quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC boosted its stake in Ulta Beauty by 5.3% during the 2nd quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 18,834 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $7,268,000 after purchasing an additional 940 shares during the period. Finally, IFG Advisory LLC bought a new position in Ulta Beauty in the 2nd quarter worth about $260,000. 90.39% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Ulta Beauty Stock Down 4.0 %

ULTA opened at $352.84 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $16.63 billion, a PE ratio of 13.76, a P/E/G ratio of 2.04 and a beta of 1.31. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $371.48 and a 200-day simple moving average of $423.42. Ulta Beauty, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $318.17 and a fifty-two week high of $574.76.

Ulta Beauty (NASDAQ:ULTA) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 29th. The specialty retailer reported $5.30 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $5.47 by ($0.17). Ulta Beauty had a net margin of 10.68% and a return on equity of 54.02%. The firm had revenue of $2.55 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.61 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $6.02 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up .9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Ulta Beauty, Inc. will post 23.03 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on Ulta Beauty from $325.00 to $300.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their target price on Ulta Beauty from $438.00 to $412.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 24th. Barclays boosted their price target on Ulta Beauty from $328.00 to $335.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday. Robert W. Baird decreased their price target on Ulta Beauty from $525.00 to $485.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, August 23rd. Finally, Oppenheimer cut their price objective on shares of Ulta Beauty from $450.00 to $435.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $434.65.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Jodi J. Caro sold 650 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $388.68, for a total transaction of $252,642.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 6,801 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,643,412.68. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In related news, Director Catherine Ann Halligan sold 100 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $390.08, for a total value of $39,008.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 2,017 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $786,791.36. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, insider Jodi J. Caro sold 650 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $388.68, for a total value of $252,642.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 6,801 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,643,412.68. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.39% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

About Ulta Beauty

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.