According to Jefferies, a strong quarter-end report signals the beginning of Ulta Beaty’s solid recovery. Ulta Beaty surpassed all expectations for her first quarter. She generated $6.30 in adjusted earnings per stock on revenue of $2.35 billion. Refinitiv surveyed analysts and they expected $4.46 earnings per share for $2.12 trillion in revenue. Also, the company’s guidance exceeded expectations. The beauty stock was upgraded to buy by Stephanie Wissink, who stated that the strong quarter-end report signaled that investors are on the right track. “Ulta Was the Unexpected Rebalancing Winner, Sounds The ‘All Clear’ on Makeup That We Needed To Hear: With now ~45% of Ulta’s biz tied to make-up (vs. 50%+ prepandemic), we had been waiting on the ‘all clear’ suggesting demand had returned to prepandemic levels with improving & sustained momentum,” Wissink wrote. Although retail firms have seen mixed earnings seasons, Ulta’s report shows that make-up is one of the best areas in the industry. “The importance of make-up cannot be understated as it’s the highest velocity category in beauty and that inflection gives us greater confidence in sustained engagement & momentum into 2H,” Wissink wrote. Jefferies increased its Ulta share price target from $400 to $475. It is now more than 25% higher than Thursday’s closing stock price. Ulta shares were roughly down 8% since the earnings report. — CNBC’s Michael Bloom contributed to this report.
