Ulta Beauty (ULTA) closed at $497.72 in the latest trading session, marking a -1.9% move from the prior day. This change lagged the S&P 500's daily gain of 0.38%. On the other hand, the Dow registered a gain of 0.1%, and the technology-centric Nasdaq increased by 0.59%.
Shares of the beauty products retailer witnessed a loss of 3.53% over the previous month, trailing the performance of the Retail-Wholesale sector with its loss of 2.27%, and the S&P 500's loss of 0.64%.
The upcoming earnings release of Ulta Beauty will be of great interest to investors. The company's earnings per share (EPS) are projected to be $4.47, reflecting a 13.04% decrease from the same quarter last year. At the same time, our most recent consensus estimate is projecting a revenue of $2.71 billion, reflecting a 7.12% rise from the equivalent quarter last year.
ULTA's full-year Zacks Consensus Estimates are calling for earnings of $24.37 per share and revenue of $12.06 billion. These results would represent year-over-year changes of -3.83% and +6.76%, respectively.
Additionally, investors should keep an eye on any recent revisions to analyst forecasts for Ulta Beauty. These latest adjustments often mirror the shifting dynamics of short-term business patterns. With this in mind, we can consider positive estimate revisions a sign of optimism about the business outlook.
Our research demonstrates that these adjustments in estimates directly associate with imminent stock price performance. We developed the Zacks Rank to capitalize on this phenomenon. Our system takes these estimate changes into account and delivers a clear, actionable rating model.
The Zacks Rank system, stretching from #1 (Strong Buy) to #5 (Strong Sell), has a noteworthy track record of outperforming, validated by third-party audits, with stocks rated #1 producing an average annual return of +25% since the year 1988. Over the past month, the Zacks Consensus EPS estimate has shifted 0.15% upward. Ulta Beauty is currently a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold).
Digging into valuation, Ulta Beauty currently has a Forward P/E ratio of 20.82. This expresses a premium compared to the average Forward P/E of 18.25 of its industry.
Investors should also note that ULTA has a PEG ratio of 3.36 right now. The PEG ratio bears resemblance to the frequently used P/E ratio, but this parameter also includes the company's expected earnings growth trajectory. The Retail - Miscellaneous industry currently had an average PEG ratio of 2.76 as of yesterday's close.
The Retail - Miscellaneous industry is part of the Retail-Wholesale sector. This group has a Zacks Industry Rank of 80, putting it in the top 33% of all 250+ industries.
The Zacks Industry Rank evaluates the power of our distinct industry groups by determining the average Zacks Rank of the individual stocks forming the groups. Our research shows that the top 50% rated industries outperform the bottom half by a factor of 2 to 1.
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Ulta Beauty Inc. (ULTA): Free Stock Analysis ReportThis article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).
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