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Investing.com - Goldman Sachs raised its price target on Ulta Beauty (NASDAQ:ULTA) to $584.00 from $530.00 while maintaining a Buy rating following the company’s second-quarter earnings beat. According to InvestingPro data, 11 analysts have recently revised their earnings estimates upward, with analyst targets ranging from $385 to $650.
Ulta Beauty shares rose approximately 4% in after-market trading after the company reported better-than-expected quarterly results and updated its fiscal year 2025 guidance with higher projections for revenue, operating margin, and earnings per share. The beauty retailer, currently trading near its 52-week high with a market capitalization of $23.9 billion, maintains a strong financial health score of "GREAT" on InvestingPro’s comprehensive assessment framework.
Goldman Sachs noted that Ulta increased its FY25 comparable sales expectations following the strong second-quarter performance, while also forecasting higher SG&A growth for the year alongside improved operating margin guidance.
The investment bank attributed Ulta’s comparable sales acceleration to a healthy cosmetics category and strong company execution, highlighting that investments in marketing, labor, and service have resulted in market share gains.
Despite concerns about higher prices across retail potentially creating uncertainty in the second half of the year, Goldman Sachs believes management’s fiscal 2025 revenue guidance will prove conservative given the current business momentum.
In other recent news, Ulta Beauty reported impressive second-quarter results for fiscal year 2026, surpassing earnings and revenue forecasts. The company achieved an earnings per share (EPS) of $5.78, which was 15.83% higher than the projected $4.99. Revenue reached $2.79 billion, exceeding predictions by 4.89%. This robust performance was driven by a 6.7% year-over-year increase in comparable sales, far outpacing analyst expectations of approximately 2.9%. Overall sales grew by 9.3% compared to the same period last year, bolstered by the Space NK acquisition and new store openings. In response to these strong results, Canaccord Genuity raised its price target for Ulta Beauty stock to $650.00 from $630.00, maintaining a Buy rating. These developments reflect the company’s strong market position and growth trajectory.
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