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Headquartered in Illinois, Ulta Beauty, Inc. (ULTA) is a prominent beauty retail company valued at $17.5 billion by market cap. It offers over 25,000 products from over 500 brands across cosmetics, fragrance, skincare, hair care, and more. The company is set to announce its Q2 earnings for fiscal 2024 on Thursday, Aug. 29.
Ahead of the event, analysts expect Ulta Beauty to report a profit of $5.50 per share, down 8.6% from $6.02 per share in the year-ago quarter. The company has exceeded Wall Street’s EPS estimates in each of the last four quarters. It reported an EPS of $6.47 in the last reported quarter, surpassing the consensus estimate by 4.5%.
Looking ahead, analysts expect Ulta Beauty to report an EPS of $25.66 in fiscal 2024, down 1.4% from $26.03 in fiscal year 2023. However, its fiscal 2025 EPS is projected to rise 10.3% annually to $28.29.
ULTA stock has plummeted 17.5% over the past 52 weeks, underperforming the broader S&P 500 Index's ($SPX) 18.6% gains and the S&P 500 Consumer Discretionary Sector SPDR Fund’s (XLY) 6.9% returns over the same time frame.
Adding to the grim price action, Ulta Beauty’s stock closed down more than 4% on Jul. 15 after Oppenheimer lowered its price target to $450 from $475 but kept an "Outperform" rating. This adjustment follows aggressive promotions by the retailer, hinting at potential challenges. Previously, Oppenheimer had named ULTA a top pick after a mid-June consumer conference, citing a favorable risk/reward outlook and potential positive outcomes from the company's then-upcoming Analyst Day.
However, the stock had climbed 1.9% following the release of its Q1 earnings report on May 30. It surpassed its EPS and revenue expectations thanks to increased comparable sales, new store contribution, and growth in other revenue.
The current consensus rating on Ulta Beauty stock is “Moderate Buy” overall. Among the 25 analysts covering the stock, 15 recommend a "Strong Buy," nine advise a "Hold," and the remaining one analyst indicates a "Strong Sell."
Furthermore, the average analyst price target for Ulta Beauty is $475.27, indicating a potential upside of 29.3% from the current price levels.
On the date of publication, Kritika Sarmah did not have (either directly or indirectly) positions in any of the securities mentioned in this article. All information and data in this article is solely for informational purposes. For more information please view the Barchart Disclosure Policy here.
