Ulta Beauty Inc. $ULTA Stake Trimmed by Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank

Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank lowered its stake in Ulta Beauty Inc. (NASDAQ:ULTA) by 25.4% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 28,334 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after selling 9,664 shares during the quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank owned approximately 0.06% of Ulta Beauty worth $17,142,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in Ulta Beauty in the 3rd quarter worth about $25,000. Grey Fox Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Ulta Beauty in the 3rd quarter worth about $31,000. Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Ulta Beauty in the 3rd quarter worth about $31,000. BOKF NA purchased a new position in Ulta Beauty in the 3rd quarter worth about $31,000. Finally, Steigerwald Gordon & Koch Inc. increased its stake in Ulta Beauty by 2,550.0% in the 4th quarter. Steigerwald Gordon & Koch Inc. now owns 53 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 51 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.39% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

ULTA has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Piper Sandler reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $725.00 price target (down from $775.00) on shares of Ulta Beauty in a research note on Friday, March 13th. William Blair reissued a “market perform” rating on shares of Ulta Beauty in a research note on Monday, March 9th. Wedbush initiated coverage on Ulta Beauty in a research report on Monday. They set an “outperform” rating for the company. Guggenheim initiated coverage on Ulta Beauty in a research report on Monday. They set a “buy” rating for the company. Finally, Raymond James Financial restated a “strong-buy” rating on shares of Ulta Beauty in a research report on Tuesday, March 10th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eighteen have assigned a Buy rating, eight have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $674.23.

Ulta Beauty Trading Down 1.1%

Shares of NASDAQ ULTA opened at $563.91 on Thursday. Ulta Beauty Inc. has a one year low of $375.01 and a one year high of $714.97. The firm has a market capitalization of $24.67 billion, a PE ratio of 22.00, a PEG ratio of 2.09 and a beta of 0.95. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $591.08 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $587.95.

Ulta Beauty (NASDAQ:ULTA) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, March 12th. The specialty retailer reported $8.01 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $7.93 by $0.08. Ulta Beauty had a return on equity of 43.56% and a net margin of 9.31%.The firm had revenue of $3.90 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.81 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $8.46 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 11.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Ulta Beauty has set its FY 2026 guidance at 28.050-28.550 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Ulta Beauty Inc. will post 28.4 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director George R. Mrkonic, Jr. sold 452 shares of Ulta Beauty stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $539.29, for a total transaction of $243,759.08. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 2,383 shares in the company, valued at $1,285,128.07. The trade was a 15.94% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 0.17% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Ulta Beauty News Roundup

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

• Positive Sentiment: Ulta announced a Gemini-enabled shopping experience and launched “Ulta AI,” an AI shopping assistant built with Google to personalize discovery and buying across Ulta and Google surfaces — a product tie-up that could boost digital conversion, customer engagement and omni-channel sales. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Jefferies upgraded ULTA to Buy recently (cited renewed cosmetics strength and engagement) and several brokers maintain high price targets (median ~$706), supporting a constructive analyst backdrop that can support upside over time. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Ulta’s consumer event “Ulta Beauty World” generated massive demand (reports say ~3 million tried to get in), indicating strong brand engagement and marketing reach that can translate into higher traffic and awareness. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Coverage exploring what Ulta Beauty World offers emerging brands highlights the company’s role as a discovery platform — strategically positive long-term but with uncertain near-term revenue impact. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Local retail expansion news (Ulta included in a new shopping center) and routine product roundups (seasonal fragrances) are steady operational items that support store footprint and merchandising but are not market-moving alone. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Positive long-term analyst pieces (Zacks, The Motley Fool) reinforce a growth narrative and pricing power thesis, but these are thematic and unlikely to swing today’s trading by themselves. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Proxy/DEF14A filing estimates show CEO Kecia Steelman’s 2025 pay jumped substantially (~59% vs. 2024), which could raise governance/ cost concerns for some investors and attract short-term selling pressure. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Institutional activity is mixed but notable: large Q4 reductions from some major managers (e.g., UBS AM removed ~1.48M shares) increase supply risk and can pressure the stock if selling continues. Insider trades include small recent sales. Read More.

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.