Daiwa Securities Group Inc. Has $2.60 Million Stock Position in Ulta Beauty, Inc. (NASDAQ:ULTA)

Daiwa Securities Group Inc. increased its holdings in Ulta Beauty, Inc. (NASDAQ:ULTA) by 13.7% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 6,728 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after acquiring an additional 812 shares during the period. Daiwa Securities Group Inc.’s holdings in Ulta Beauty were worth $2,596,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Ulta Beauty by 6.7% during the fourth quarter. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. now owns 1,227 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $601,000 after purchasing an additional 77 shares during the period. Fiera Capital Corp lifted its position in Ulta Beauty by 2.0% in the 4th quarter. Fiera Capital Corp now owns 1,945 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $953,000 after buying an additional 38 shares in the last quarter. Main Street Financial Solutions LLC boosted its stake in shares of Ulta Beauty by 6.6% during the 4th quarter. Main Street Financial Solutions LLC now owns 1,833 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $898,000 after buying an additional 113 shares during the period. Sheaff Brock Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Ulta Beauty during the 4th quarter valued at $209,000. Finally, Manchester Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Ulta Beauty by 41.2% in the fourth quarter. Manchester Capital Management LLC now owns 72 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $35,000 after acquiring an additional 21 shares during the last quarter. 90.39% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ulta Beauty

In other news, Director Catherine Ann Halligan sold 100 shares of Ulta Beauty stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $390.08, for a total transaction of $39,008.00. Following 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 legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, insider Jodi J. Caro sold 650 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $388.68, for a total value of $252,642.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 6,801 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,643,412.68. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Catherine Ann Halligan sold 100 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $390.08, for a total transaction of $39,008.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 2,017 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $786,791.36. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.39% of the company’s stock.

Ulta Beauty Trading Up 1.4 %

Shares of ULTA stock opened at $378.34 on Friday. Ulta Beauty, Inc. has a 1 year low of $318.17 and a 1 year high of $574.76. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $368.16 and its 200 day simple moving average is $414.31. The firm has a market capitalization of $17.83 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.76, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.12 and a beta of 1.31.

Ulta Beauty (NASDAQ:ULTA) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 29th. The specialty retailer reported $5.30 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $5.47 by ($0.17). Ulta Beauty had a return on equity of 54.02% and a net margin of 10.68%. The company had revenue of $2.55 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.61 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $6.02 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up .9% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts anticipate that Ulta Beauty, Inc. will post 23.24 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently issued reports on the company. B. Riley started coverage on Ulta Beauty in a research report on Tuesday. They set a “sell” rating and a $300.00 price objective for the company. Oppenheimer reduced their price target on Ulta Beauty from $450.00 to $435.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, August 30th. BMO Capital Markets dropped their price objective on Ulta Beauty from $500.00 to $385.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, August 30th. DA Davidson reduced their target price on shares of Ulta Beauty from $507.00 to $435.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, August 30th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group decreased their target price on shares of Ulta Beauty from $438.00 to $412.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, May 24th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Ulta Beauty presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $425.29.

Ulta Beauty Company 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.