Ulta Beauty, Inc. (NASDAQ:ULTA) Stock Position Lowered by William Blair Investment Management LLC

William Blair Investment Management LLC lessened its position in Ulta Beauty, Inc. (NASDAQ:ULTA) by 44.9% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 44,740 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after selling 36,437 shares during the quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Ulta Beauty were worth $19,459,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Sunbelt Securities Inc. lifted its position in shares of Ulta Beauty by 118.4% in the 3rd quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. now owns 83 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 45 shares in the last quarter. Westside Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in Ulta Beauty by 151.5% in the 3rd quarter. Westside Investment Management Inc. now owns 83 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. Edge Capital Group LLC purchased a new stake in Ulta Beauty in the 4th quarter worth approximately $33,000. Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd purchased a new stake in Ulta Beauty in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $41,000. Finally, Future Financial Wealth Managment LLC purchased a new stake in Ulta Beauty in the 4th quarter worth approximately $43,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.39% of the company’s stock.

Ulta Beauty Price Performance

NASDAQ ULTA opened at $343.83 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $15.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.76, a P/E/G ratio of 0.89 and a beta of 1.34. The company’s fifty day moving average is $381.84 and its two-hundred day moving average is $386.80. Ulta Beauty, Inc. has a 52-week low of $309.01 and a 52-week high of $535.08.

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have issued reports on ULTA. DA Davidson cut their target price on shares of Ulta Beauty from $510.00 to $415.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, March 14th. Oppenheimer increased their target price on shares of Ulta Beauty from $505.00 to $515.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Telsey Advisory Group reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $500.00 target price on shares of Ulta Beauty in a research report on Monday, March 10th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on shares of Ulta Beauty from $360.00 to $310.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, March 14th. Finally, TD Cowen increased their price target on shares of Ulta Beauty from $450.00 to $480.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have assigned a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $427.13.

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.