Bedell Frazier Investment Counselling LLC Makes New Investment in Ulta Beauty Inc. $ULTA

Bedell Frazier Investment Counselling LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Ulta Beauty Inc. (NASDAQ:ULTA) during the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 3,404 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $1,861,000.

Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Ulta Beauty during the 2nd quarter worth about $258,791,000. Andra AP fonden raised its stake in shares of Ulta Beauty by 351,900.0% in the third quarter. Andra AP fonden now owns 228,800 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $125,096,000 after purchasing an additional 228,735 shares during the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Ulta Beauty by 76.6% in the second quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 477,504 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $222,794,000 after purchasing an additional 207,084 shares during the last quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans lifted its holdings in shares of Ulta Beauty by 1,597.2% during the third quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 158,132 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $86,459,000 after purchasing an additional 148,815 shares during the period. Finally, Hudson Bay Capital Management LP purchased a new stake in Ulta Beauty in the second quarter valued at approximately $62,170,000. 90.39% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Ulta Beauty Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ ULTA opened at $684.79 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $30.38 billion, a PE ratio of 26.26, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.19 and a beta of 0.85. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $659.05 and its 200 day moving average price is $579.02. Ulta Beauty Inc. has a 1 year low of $309.01 and a 1 year high of $714.97.

Ulta Beauty (NASDAQ:ULTA) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, December 4th. The specialty retailer reported $5.14 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.61 by $0.53. Ulta Beauty had a net margin of 9.93% and a return on equity of 46.33%. The company had revenue of $2.86 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.70 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $5.14 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.9% on a year-over-year basis. Ulta Beauty has set its FY 2025 guidance at 25.200-25.500 EPS. On average, equities analysts expect that Ulta Beauty Inc. will post 23.96 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the stock. Bank of America raised their price target on shares of Ulta Beauty from $610.00 to $685.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 8th. Piper Sandler reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $775.00 price objective on shares of Ulta Beauty in a research note on Tuesday, January 27th. TD Cowen boosted their target price on shares of Ulta Beauty from $725.00 to $775.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Ulta Beauty in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. Finally, B. Riley Financial reaffirmed a “neutral” rating on shares of Ulta Beauty in a research report on Monday, December 8th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have given a Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Ulta Beauty has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $626.84.

About Ulta Beauty

Ulta Beauty, Inc (NASDAQ: ULTA) is a U.S.-based specialty retailer and beauty services provider focused on cosmetics, fragrance, skin care, hair care, bath and body, and beauty tools. The company operates a dual-format business that combines brick-and-mortar retail stores with an e-commerce platform, offering a broad assortment of national, prestige and mass-market brands alongside its own private-label products. In many locations Ulta also provides full-service salon treatments, positioning the company as a one-stop destination for product discovery and in-store services.

The retailer’s product mix spans color cosmetics, haircare and styling products, skin and body care, fragrance, and accessories, catering to a wide range of consumer preferences and price points.