Ulta Beauty, Inc. (NASDAQ:ULTA) Shares Acquired by Avalon Trust Co

Avalon Trust Co increased its stake in shares of Ulta Beauty, Inc. (NASDAQ:ULTA) by 0.8% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 34,085 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 275 shares during the quarter. Ulta Beauty accounts for approximately 1.5% of Avalon Trust Co’s holdings, making the stock its 24th biggest position. Avalon Trust Co owned approximately 0.07% of Ulta Beauty worth $16,701,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Morgan Stanley increased its position in Ulta Beauty by 56.7% during the 3rd quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 1,538,533 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $614,568,000 after purchasing an additional 556,809 shares during the period. International Assets Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Ulta Beauty by 45,740.3% in the 4th quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 291,544 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $142,854,000 after purchasing an additional 290,908 shares in the last quarter. Boston Partners lifted its stake in shares of Ulta Beauty by 86.5% in the third quarter. Boston Partners now owns 342,547 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $136,451,000 after purchasing an additional 158,897 shares during the period. Scopus Asset Management L.P. purchased a new stake in Ulta Beauty during the third quarter worth about $39,945,000. Finally, Barclays PLC boosted its holdings in Ulta Beauty by 74.3% during the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 221,882 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $88,630,000 after buying an additional 94,581 shares in the last quarter. 90.39% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ULTA has been the subject of a number of research reports. Robert W. Baird lifted their price target on shares of Ulta Beauty from $575.00 to $625.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, March 15th. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on Ulta Beauty from $480.00 to $525.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, March 15th. Piper Sandler lowered their target price on Ulta Beauty from $665.00 to $595.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 9th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on Ulta Beauty from $505.00 to $565.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, March 15th. Finally, DA Davidson reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $595.00 price objective on shares of Ulta Beauty in a research report on Friday, March 15th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating, twelve have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Ulta Beauty has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $548.05.

Ulta Beauty Price Performance

NASDAQ:ULTA traded up $0.06 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $397.39. 591,398 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 796,369. The firm has a market cap of $19.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.25, a PEG ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 1.36. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $489.34 and a 200 day simple moving average of $468.82. Ulta Beauty, Inc. has a 52-week low of $368.02 and a 52-week high of $574.76.

Ulta Beauty (NASDAQ:ULTA) last released 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. Ulta Beauty had a return on equity of 61.64% and a net margin of 11.52%. The business had revenue of $3.55 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.53 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $6.68 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts predict that Ulta Beauty, Inc. will post 26.55 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ulta Beauty declared that its board has approved a share repurchase program on Thursday, March 14th that permits the company to buyback $2.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the specialty retailer to buy up to 7.3% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are generally an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Transactions at Ulta Beauty

In other news, COO Kecia Steelman sold 20,950 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $526.39, for a total value of $11,027,870.50. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 10,494 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,523,936.66. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In other Ulta Beauty news, Director Catherine Ann Halligan sold 500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the director now directly owns 1,665 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $876,222.90. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, COO Kecia Steelman sold 20,950 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $526.39, for a total transaction of $11,027,870.50. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 10,494 shares in the company, valued at $5,523,936.66. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 24,552 shares of company stock worth $12,920,326. 0.34% of the stock is currently owned by company 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.