Rahlfs Capital LLC Invests $2.40 Million in Ulta Beauty, Inc. (NASDAQ:ULTA)

Rahlfs Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Ulta Beauty, Inc. (NASDAQ:ULTA) during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor purchased 5,526 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $2,403,000. Ulta Beauty comprises 2.2% of Rahlfs Capital LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 10th biggest holding.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of ULTA. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Ulta Beauty in the 4th quarter worth about $239,432,000. Proficio Capital Partners LLC bought a new position in Ulta Beauty during the fourth quarter valued at $58,074,000. Victory Capital Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Ulta Beauty by 364.6% in the fourth quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 159,053 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $69,177,000 after buying an additional 124,822 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lifted its position in shares of Ulta Beauty by 258.3% during the 4th quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 126,190 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $54,884,000 after buying an additional 90,972 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Edge Capital Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Ulta Beauty during the 4th quarter worth $33,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.39% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have recently issued reports on ULTA. TD Cowen boosted their price target on shares of Ulta Beauty from $450.00 to $480.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on Ulta Beauty from $500.00 to $460.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, March 14th. UBS Group upped their price target on Ulta Beauty from $470.00 to $490.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, December 6th. Bank of America cut their price objective on shares of Ulta Beauty from $475.00 to $380.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, March 14th. Finally, Piper Sandler decreased their target price on shares of Ulta Beauty from $425.00 to $364.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, March 14th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have issued a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $427.61.

Ulta Beauty Stock Down 2.3 %

NASDAQ ULTA opened at $359.36 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $16.66 billion, a PE ratio of 14.38, a P/E/G ratio of 0.89 and a beta of 1.34. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $369.03 and its 200 day moving average is $385.97. Ulta Beauty, Inc. has a twelve month low of $309.01 and a twelve month high of $460.00.

Ulta Beauty (NASDAQ:ULTA) last released its earnings results on Thursday, March 13th. The specialty retailer reported $8.46 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $7.13 by $1.33. Ulta Beauty had a net margin of 10.58% and a return on equity of 51.95%. The firm had revenue of $3.49 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.47 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $8.08 EPS. The company’s revenue was down 1.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts anticipate that Ulta Beauty, Inc. will post 23.96 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Jodi J. Caro sold 902 shares of the company’s 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 transaction, the insider now owns 7,632 shares in the company, valued at $2,817,429.12. The trade was a 10.57 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.39% 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.