Ulta Beauty (NASDAQ:ULTA) Releases FY 2024 Earnings Guidance

Ulta Beauty (NASDAQ:ULTA) updated its FY 2024 earnings guidance on Friday. The company provided earnings per share guidance of 26.200-27.000 for the period, compared to the consensus earnings per share estimate of 26.800. The company issued revenue guidance of $11.7 billion-$11.8 billion, compared to the consensus revenue estimate of $11.8 billion.

Ulta Beauty Stock Performance

Ulta Beauty stock opened at $397.39 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $19.05 billion, a PE ratio of 15.25, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 1.36. Ulta Beauty has a one year low of $368.02 and a one year high of $574.76. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $486.30 and its 200 day moving average price is $470.17.

Ulta Beauty (NASDAQ:ULTA) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, March 14th. The specialty retailer reported $8.08 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $7.49 by $0.59. The business had revenue of $3.55 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.53 billion. Ulta Beauty had a net margin of 11.52% and a return on equity of 61.64%. The business’s revenue was up 10.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $6.68 earnings per share. On average, analysts forecast that Ulta Beauty will post 26.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ulta Beauty declared that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback program on Thursday, March 14th that authorizes the company to buyback $2.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the specialty retailer to repurchase up to 7.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are generally an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have commented on the stock. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on shares of Ulta Beauty from $480.00 to $525.00 and gave the stock an equal weight rating in a research report on Friday, March 15th. Loop Capital raised shares of Ulta Beauty from a hold rating to a buy rating and set a $540.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 8th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on Ulta Beauty from $505.00 to $565.00 and gave the stock a hold rating in a research note on Friday, March 15th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on Ulta Beauty from $535.00 to $600.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a report on Thursday, February 15th. Finally, DA Davidson reaffirmed a buy rating and issued a $595.00 price target on shares of Ulta Beauty in a research report on Friday, March 15th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating, twelve have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Ulta Beauty presently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $548.05.

Insider Transactions at Ulta Beauty

In other Ulta Beauty news, Director Catherine Ann Halligan sold 500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $526.26, for a total value of $263,130.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 1,665 shares in the company, valued at $876,222.90. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other Ulta Beauty news, COO Kecia Steelman sold 20,950 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $526.39, for a total value of $11,027,870.50. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 10,494 shares in the company, valued at $5,523,936.66. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Catherine Ann Halligan sold 500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $526.26, for a total transaction of $263,130.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 1,665 shares in the company, valued at $876,222.90. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 24,552 shares of company stock worth $12,920,326 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.39% of the company’s stock.

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.