Moran Wealth Management LLC Acquires 339 Shares of Ulta Beauty Inc. (NASDAQ:ULTA)

Moran Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in Ulta Beauty Inc. (NASDAQ:ULTA) by 2.3% during the first quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 15,378 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after buying an additional 339 shares during the period. Moran Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Ulta Beauty were worth $5,637,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. LaFleur & Godfrey LLC raised its position in shares of Ulta Beauty by 32.1% in the 4th quarter. LaFleur & Godfrey LLC now owns 2,455 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $1,068,000 after acquiring an additional 596 shares during the period. IFP Advisors Inc raised its holdings in Ulta Beauty by 6.5% in the fourth quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 3,481 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $1,514,000 after purchasing an additional 213 shares during the period. Argonautica Private Wealth Management Inc. raised its holdings in Ulta Beauty by 4.2% in the fourth quarter. Argonautica Private Wealth Management Inc. now owns 861 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $374,000 after purchasing an additional 35 shares during the period. Simmons Bank grew its holdings in shares of Ulta Beauty by 14.1% in the 4th quarter. Simmons Bank now owns 5,124 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $2,229,000 after buying an additional 634 shares during the period. Finally, Mn Services Vermogensbeheer B.V. grew its holdings in shares of Ulta Beauty by 4.8% in the 4th quarter. Mn Services Vermogensbeheer B.V. now owns 19,500 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $8,481,000 after buying an additional 900 shares during the period. 90.39% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Ulta Beauty Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:ULTA opened at $459.09 on Thursday. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $423.67 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $399.70. Ulta Beauty Inc. has a one year low of $309.01 and a one year high of $491.98. The stock has a market capitalization of $20.64 billion, a PE ratio of 17.93, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.74 and a beta of 1.09.

Ulta Beauty (NASDAQ:ULTA) last released its earnings results on Thursday, May 29th. The specialty retailer reported $6.70 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $5.73 by $0.97. Ulta Beauty had a return on equity of 49.73% and a net margin of 10.45%. The business had revenue of $2.85 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.79 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $6.47 earnings per share. Ulta Beauty’s revenue was up 4.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts anticipate that Ulta Beauty Inc. will post 23.96 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have weighed in on the company. Raymond James Financial reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $500.00 target price (up from $450.00) on shares of Ulta Beauty in a report on Friday, May 30th. Oppenheimer raised their price target on Ulta Beauty from $465.00 to $510.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, May 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on Ulta Beauty from $477.00 to $525.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, May 30th. Robert W. Baird increased their target price on Ulta Beauty from $440.00 to $525.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, May 30th. Finally, Loop Capital reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $510.00 price target (up previously from $480.00) on shares of Ulta Beauty in a research note on Monday, June 16th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have assigned a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $462.22.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Jodi J. Caro sold 902 shares of Ulta Beauty stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $369.16, for a total value of $332,982.32. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 7,632 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,817,429.12. This trade represents a 10.57% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Insiders own 0.17% of the company’s stock.

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.