Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. Makes New Investment in Ulta Beauty Inc. $ULTA

Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. bought a new stake in shares of Ulta Beauty Inc. (NASDAQ:ULTA) during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 1,949 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $879,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Ulta Beauty by 0.4% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 5,376,848 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $3,253,047,000 after acquiring an additional 23,434 shares during the period. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new stake in Ulta Beauty in the second quarter worth $1,815,712,000. State Street Corp increased its stake in Ulta Beauty by 2.5% in the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 2,025,565 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $1,225,487,000 after purchasing an additional 50,305 shares during the period. Diamant Asset Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Ulta Beauty by 52,171.0% during the first quarter. Diamant Asset Management Inc. now owns 1,474,042 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $77,050,000 after purchasing an additional 1,471,222 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Ulta Beauty by 1.8% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,240,210 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $747,587,000 after purchasing an additional 21,947 shares during the last quarter. 90.39% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Loop Capital restated a “hold” rating and issued a $550.00 price target on shares of Ulta Beauty in a report on Wednesday, June 3rd. Canaccord Genuity Group decreased their price objective on shares of Ulta Beauty from $799.00 to $731.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, June 3rd. William Blair reissued a “market perform” rating on shares of Ulta Beauty in a research report on Friday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on shares of Ulta Beauty from $750.00 to $631.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, June 3rd. Finally, UBS Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Ulta Beauty in a research report on Monday. One 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 given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $636.41.

Ulta Beauty News Roundup

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

• Positive Sentiment: Deutsche Bank expects Ulta Beauty’s fiscal second-quarter same-store sales growth to exceed consensus estimates, raising expectations for a potential earnings and revenue beat. Ulta Beauty Second-Quarter Same-Store Sales Poised for Beat, Deutsche Bank Says
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts continue to support the stock, with UBS maintaining a Buy rating and a $735 price target, while Canaccord Genuity reiterated its Buy rating and $731 target. Their views cite durable growth and the company’s Ulta Beauty Unleashed strategy. UBS Ulta Beauty Rating Canaccord Genuity Ulta Beauty Rating
• Positive Sentiment: Ulta Beauty’s nationwide agreement with Chinese beauty brand Proya should broaden its product assortment and support international brand exposure. The company also filed plans for another store in Huber Heights, Ohio, indicating continued physical expansion. Proya Ulta Beauty Agreement Ulta Beauty Huber Heights Location
• Neutral Sentiment: Options activity suggests traders are positioning for a potentially significant move, but the available report does not establish whether those bets are bullish or bearish. Reported short-interest data showed zero shares and an anomalous “NaN” change, making it unreliable as a trading signal. Ulta Beauty Options Activity
• Negative Sentiment: Although analysts expect second-quarter sales and EPS growth, previews also highlight potential margin pressure. That uncertainty, along with profit-taking after the recent rally, may be limiting the stock’s response to favorable news. Ulta’s latest reported quarter showed an EPS and revenue beat, with revenue up 11.1% year over year.

Ulta Beauty Trading Down 0.3%

ULTA opened at $537.22 on Wednesday. Ulta Beauty Inc. has a 12-month low of $443.60 and a 12-month high of $714.97. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $492.80 and its 200-day simple moving average is $536.87. The company has a market capitalization of $23.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.14, a PEG ratio of 1.68 and a beta of 0.87.

Ulta Beauty (NASDAQ:ULTA) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, June 2nd. The specialty retailer reported $7.74 earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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 during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.12 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $6.70 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly 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 research analysts predict that Ulta Beauty Inc. will post 28.76 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director George R. Mrkonic, Jr. sold 383 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $475.84, for a total value of $182,246.72. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 2,404 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,143,919.36. The trade was a 13.74% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.20% 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.