Ulta Beauty, Inc. (NASDAQ:ULTA) Sees Large Growth in Short Interest

Ulta Beauty, Inc. (NASDAQ:ULTA) was the recipient of a large growth in short interest in the month of August. As of August 31st, there was short interest totalling 3,230,000 shares, a growth of 39.8% from the August 15th total of 2,310,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 1,150,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 2.8 days. Currently, 6.9% of the shares of the stock are sold short.

Ulta Beauty Stock Performance

Shares of ULTA opened at $378.34 on Monday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $368.16 and a 200-day simple moving average of $412.25. Ulta Beauty has a 1 year low of $318.17 and a 1 year high of $574.76. The stock has a market capitalization of $18.05 billion, a PE ratio of 14.76, a PEG ratio of 2.13 and a beta of 1.31.

Ulta Beauty (NASDAQ:ULTA) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 29th. The specialty retailer reported $5.30 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates 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 analyst estimates of $2.61 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $6.02 earnings per share. Ulta Beauty’s revenue for the quarter was up .9% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts predict that Ulta Beauty will post 23.21 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Catherine Ann Halligan sold 100 shares of Ulta Beauty stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $390.08, for a total value of $39,008.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 2,017 shares in the company, valued at $786,791.36. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other news, insider Jodi J. Caro sold 650 shares of the company’s 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 sale, the insider now directly owns 6,801 shares in the company, valued at $2,643,412.68. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, 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 value of $39,008.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 2,017 shares in the company, valued at approximately $786,791.36. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.39% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Ulta Beauty

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Manchester Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Ulta Beauty by 41.2% during the fourth quarter. Manchester Capital Management LLC now owns 72 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 21 shares in the last quarter. Janiczek Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in Ulta Beauty by 32.5% in the 1st quarter. Janiczek Wealth Management LLC now owns 102 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $53,000 after buying an additional 25 shares during the period. Commerce Bank raised its position in Ulta Beauty by 1.0% during the 4th quarter. Commerce Bank now owns 2,742 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $1,344,000 after buying an additional 26 shares during the last quarter. Meeder Advisory Services Inc. lifted its position in Ulta Beauty by 5.8% in the first quarter. Meeder Advisory Services Inc. now owns 478 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $250,000 after purchasing an additional 26 shares during the period. Finally, Eudaimonia Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of Ulta Beauty by 4.0% during the 1st quarter. Eudaimonia Partners LLC now owns 698 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $365,000 after buying an additional 27 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.39% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ULTA has been the topic of several analyst reports. UBS Group reduced their price target on Ulta Beauty from $550.00 to $505.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, August 30th. TD Cowen decreased their target price on shares of Ulta Beauty from $500.00 to $395.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, August 30th. Loop Capital cut their price target on shares of Ulta Beauty from $520.00 to $450.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, September 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on shares of Ulta Beauty from $325.00 to $300.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, August 30th. Finally, Oppenheimer lowered their price objective on Ulta Beauty from $450.00 to $435.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, August 30th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price 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.