Ulta Beauty (NASDAQ:ULTA) Posts Quarterly Earnings Results, Beats Expectations By $0.08 EPS

Ulta Beauty (NASDAQ:ULTA) announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday. The specialty retailer reported $8.01 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $7.93 by $0.08, FiscalAI reports. The business had revenue of $3.90 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.81 billion. Ulta Beauty had a return on equity of 46.33% and a net margin of 9.93%.The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 11.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $8.46 earnings per share. Ulta Beauty updated its FY 2026 guidance to 28.050-28.550 EPS.

Here are the key takeaways from Ulta Beauty’s conference call:

• Strong fiscal 2025 results — net sales rose nearly 10% to $12.4B, comparable sales +5.4%, operating income of $1.5B (12.4% of sales) and EPS of $25.64, outpacing guidance.
• Ulta Beauty Unleashed investments in omni‑channel execution, marketing, personalization and assortment (including ~100 new brands) grew loyalty to 46.7 million members and helped regain market share, which management says will drive future growth.
• Management provided a constructive FY26 outlook — net sales +6–7% to $13.1–13.2B, comps +2.5–3.5%, operating profit +6–9%, EPS of $28.05–$28.55, and an intent to return ~$1B to shareholders via buybacks.
• Expense and margin pressure — FY25 SG&A rose materially (quarterly SG&A +23%, FY SG&A +17.4%) driven by incentive pay, Space NK and investment spend; gross margin faced headwinds from channel mix and store fixed‑cost deleverage.
• Management is scaling new growth channels — international expansion (Space NK, Mexico, Middle East), a curated marketplace (5,000 SKUs), TikTok Shop launch and supply‑chain automation — which are expected to improve inventory productivity and incremental profit over time.

Ulta Beauty Trading Down 4.3%

Shares of NASDAQ ULTA opened at $624.70 on Friday. Ulta Beauty has a twelve month low of $309.01 and a twelve month high of $714.97. The stock has a market cap of $27.71 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.95, a P/E/G ratio of 3.04 and a beta of 0.82. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $667.28 and a two-hundred day moving average of $586.77.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ulta Beauty

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Focus Partners Wealth raised its stake in shares of Ulta Beauty by 231.6% during the 1st quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 3,744 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $1,372,000 after buying an additional 2,615 shares during the period. Intech Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Ulta Beauty by 48.9% during the first quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 4,795 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $1,758,000 after buying an additional 1,574 shares in the last quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC bought a new position in Ulta Beauty in the 2nd quarter valued at about $466,000. Jump Financial LLC purchased a new position in Ulta Beauty during the second quarter valued at $1,196,000. Finally, Daiwa Securities Group Inc. lifted its position in Ulta Beauty by 0.9% during the second quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 7,475 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $3,497,000 after acquiring an additional 70 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 90.39% of the company’s stock.

More Ulta Beauty News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Q4 top-line beat and digital traction — Ulta reported revenue of $3.90B (up 11.8% YoY) and said AI-driven personalization helped double‑digit eCommerce growth, supporting continued sales momentum. Business Wire: Q4 results
• Positive Sentiment: New brand rollouts and partnerships — management highlighted exclusive launches (e.g., Rare Beauty) and assortments like Luna Bronze that produced strong one‑day/segment results and could expand customer reach. Yahoo: Rare Beauty launch
• Neutral Sentiment: Earnings per share roughly steady vs. estimates — reported EPS of $8.01 (near consensus) and operating metrics show both growth (sales) and some year‑over‑year profit compression. This keeps the business case intact but reduces near‑term upside visibility. Yahoo: Earnings snapshot
• Neutral Sentiment: Company reiterated strategy investments — higher marketing, corporate overhead and technology spend (capex up) are intentional to drive market share, which may support long‑term growth but compresses short‑term margins. PYMNTS: AI and investments
• Negative Sentiment: Cautious FY2026 outlook and profit warning — management’s fiscal‑year guidance and same‑store sales projections were viewed as conservative and fell short of some Street expectations, prompting investor concern about growth deceleration. Reuters: Guidance below estimates
• Negative Sentiment: Rising advertising/SG&A and margin pressure — company flagged higher advertising and incentive costs; operating margin contracted versus prior year, which reduces near‑term earnings visibility. QuiverQuant: Margin pressure analysis
• Negative Sentiment: Market reaction: shares fell sharply in after‑hours/extended trading — investors punished the cautious guidance and cost outlook despite the sales beat, leading to an ~8%+ drop after the print. Blockonomi: After‑hours drop MarketWatch: Profit forecast sinks stock

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on the company. UBS Group increased their price objective on Ulta Beauty from $690.00 to $780.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 7th. DA Davidson boosted their price objective on shares of Ulta Beauty from $625.00 to $650.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, December 5th. William Blair reissued a “market perform” rating on shares of Ulta Beauty in a research note on Monday. Canaccord Genuity Group increased their price target on shares of Ulta Beauty from $674.00 to $799.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $732.00 price target on Ulta Beauty in a research note on Thursday, January 8th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have issued a Buy rating, twelve have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Ulta Beauty presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $638.12.

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.