Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund Increases Stock Holdings in Ulta Beauty Inc. $ULTA

Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund increased its position in shares of Ulta Beauty Inc. (NASDAQ:ULTA) by 13.8% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 37,274 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after acquiring an additional 4,527 shares during the quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund’s holdings in Ulta Beauty were worth $22,551,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Focus Partners Wealth lifted its holdings in Ulta Beauty by 231.6% in the first quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 3,744 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $1,372,000 after acquiring an additional 2,615 shares during the last quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC grew its position in Ulta Beauty by 48.9% in the first quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 4,795 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $1,758,000 after acquiring an additional 1,574 shares during the period. Sivia Capital Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Ulta Beauty during the second quarter worth $466,000. Jump Financial LLC purchased a new stake in Ulta Beauty in the second quarter valued at $1,196,000. Finally, Daiwa Securities Group Inc. raised its position in Ulta Beauty by 0.9% in the second quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 7,475 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $3,497,000 after purchasing an additional 70 shares during the period. 90.39% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Key Ulta Beauty News

Here are the key news stories impacting Ulta Beauty this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Ulta Beauty continues to benefit from brand and category momentum, including fragrance and prestige products, which were highlighted as strong drivers in recent Q1 results and follow-up analysis. That supports the view that core demand remains healthy. 5 Insightful Analyst Questions From Ulta’s Q1 Earnings Call
• Positive Sentiment: Khloé Kardashian launched XO Blue fragrance at Ulta, adding a celebrity-backed exclusivity play that may help traffic, sales, and Ulta’s image as a destination for new beauty launches. Khloé Kardashian Launches XO Blue Fragrance at Ulta With a Summer Beach Scent
• Positive Sentiment: Ulta shareholders approved governance and incentive changes, which can be viewed as a sign of corporate alignment and cleaner execution going forward. Ulta Beauty Shareholders Approve Governance and Incentive Changes
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst and comparison pieces like “WOOF vs. ULTA” and the Zacks feature are mostly valuation-focused and do not add a clear near-term catalyst, but they keep Ulta in the spotlight for investors weighing quality versus value. WOOF vs. ULTA: Which Stock Is the Better Value Option?
• Negative Sentiment: Investor sentiment remains mixed because some commentary argues Ulta’s growth may be slowing and that margin improvements may be hard to sustain, which helps explain why the stock has been drifting lower despite solid earnings. Is Ulta Beauty Losing Its Glamour? Why Investors Are Dumping ULTA Stock
• Negative Sentiment: Another recent opinion piece said Ulta’s latest quarter looked “ugly,” with investors worried that guidance points to slower EPS growth and that some margin gains may not last, adding to pressure on the shares. Ulta Beauty Earnings Were Ugly. We’re Pulling Our Recommendation.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on ULTA. Canaccord Genuity Group lowered their price target on Ulta Beauty from $799.00 to $731.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, June 3rd. Loop Capital restated a “hold” rating and issued a $550.00 price objective on shares of Ulta Beauty in a report on Wednesday, June 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on shares of Ulta Beauty from $475.00 to $450.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, June 3rd. TD Cowen lowered their target price on shares of Ulta Beauty from $700.00 to $600.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group lifted their price target on shares of Ulta Beauty from $640.00 to $715.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, March 9th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nineteen have given a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $644.91.

Ulta Beauty Trading Down 1.5%

Shares of NASDAQ ULTA opened at $470.75 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $20.24 billion, a PE ratio of 17.65, a PEG ratio of 1.49 and a beta of 0.86. Ulta Beauty Inc. has a twelve month low of $452.00 and a twelve month high of $714.97. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $518.56 and a 200-day simple moving average of $583.79.

Ulta Beauty (NASDAQ:ULTA) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, June 2nd. The specialty retailer reported $7.74 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $6.89 by $0.85. Ulta Beauty had a return on equity of 44.77% and a net margin of 9.36%.The firm had revenue of $3.16 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.12 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $6.70 EPS. Ulta Beauty’s revenue was up 11.1% on a year-over-year basis. Ulta Beauty has set its FY 2026 guidance at 28.360-28.800 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that Ulta Beauty Inc. will post 28.72 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity at Ulta Beauty

In related news, Director George R. Mrkonic, Jr. sold 452 shares of Ulta Beauty stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $539.29, for a total value of $243,759.08. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 2,383 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,285,128.07. The trade was a 15.94% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.17% of the company’s stock.

Ulta Beauty Company Profile

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.