Marshall Wace LLP Acquires 454,711 Shares of Ulta Beauty, Inc. (NASDAQ:ULTA)

Marshall Wace LLP lifted its holdings in shares of Ulta Beauty, Inc. (NASDAQ:ULTA - Free Report) by 10,336.7% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 459,110 shares of the specialty retailer's stock after acquiring an additional 454,711 shares during the period. Marshall Wace LLP owned approximately 0.99% of Ulta Beauty worth $199,681,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC raised its stake in Ulta Beauty by 28.7% during the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 166 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $72,000 after acquiring an additional 37 shares in the last quarter. Savant Capital LLC raised its stake in shares of Ulta Beauty by 199.5% in the fourth quarter. Savant Capital LLC now owns 4,646 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $2,021,000 after acquiring an additional 3,095 shares during the last quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Ulta Beauty by 7.8% in the 4th quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC now owns 3,973 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $1,663,000 after buying an additional 288 shares during the period. Buckhead Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of Ulta Beauty by 15.6% during the fourth quarter. Buckhead Capital Management LLC now owns 12,088 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $5,257,000 after acquiring an additional 1,633 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Brookstone Capital Management acquired a new position in shares of Ulta Beauty during the fourth quarter valued at $348,000. 90.39% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ULTA has been the subject of several recent research reports. Canaccord Genuity Group cut their target price on shares of Ulta Beauty from $538.00 to $526.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, March 14th. The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded shares of Ulta Beauty from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and increased their price objective for the company from $384.00 to $423.00 in a report on Tuesday, April 1st. TD Cowen upped their target price on shares of Ulta Beauty from $450.00 to $480.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Bank of America reduced their price target on Ulta Beauty from $475.00 to $380.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, March 14th. Finally, B. Riley dropped their price objective on Ulta Beauty from $430.00 to $330.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Friday, March 14th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have issued a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Ulta Beauty currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $427.61.

Ulta Beauty Stock Performance

Ulta Beauty stock traded up $8.16 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $357.75. The stock had a trading volume of 741,747 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,056,438. Ulta Beauty, Inc. has a 1-year low of $309.01 and a 1-year high of $460.00. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $357.16 and its 200-day simple moving average is $382.26. The stock has a market capitalization of $16.21 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.32, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.89 and a beta of 1.16.

Ulta Beauty (NASDAQ:ULTA - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, March 13th. The specialty retailer reported $8.46 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $7.13 by $1.33. Ulta Beauty had a net margin of 10.58% and a return on equity of 51.95%. The business had revenue of $3.49 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.47 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $8.08 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down 1.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Ulta Beauty, Inc. will post 23.96 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Ulta Beauty

In other news, insider Jodi J. Caro sold 902 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $369.16, for a total value of $332,982.32. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 7,632 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,817,429.12. This represents a 10.57 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.39% of the company's stock.

About Ulta Beauty

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.