Tag Archives: Ulta Salon

Why Ulta Shares Tumbled

By Jeremy Bowman, The Motley Fool

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Although we don’t believe in timing the market or panicking over market movements, we do like to keep an eye on big changes — just in case they’re material to our investing thesis.

What: Shares of Ulta Salon were getting beaten with the ugly stick today, falling as much as 16% after the beauty products chain provided disappointing guidance in its quarterly report.

So what: Ulta actually beat earnings estimates slightly, posting an EPS of $1.00 against expectations of $0.98, and revenues of $758.8 million were in line with estimates. Sales grew 30.3% in the quarter, though they benefited from an extra week in the quarter, while same-store sales jumped 8%. For the current quarter, Ulta sees sales growth of about 21%, to $568 to $577 million, EPS of $0.60-$0.63, and a comparable sales increase of 4%-6% for both the year and the quarter. Analysts had expected earnings per share of $0.72, however,

Now what: Today’s drop seems a little steep, but we’ve seen this pattern before with high-priced growth stocks. Ulta still carries a high price tag at a P/E of 28, but with 125 new stores planned this year — a 22% increase in the base — it would seem to be growing fast enough to justify the markup. Ulta also received a downgrade from Oppenheimer in the wake of yesterday’s report, but I’d tend to see today’s drop as a buying opportunity. This is a company that expects long-term EPS growth of 25%-30% and seems to have a plan to deliver.

Get more on Ulta. Add the company to your Watchlist by clicking right here.

The article Why Ulta Shares Tumbled originally appeared on Fool.com.

Fool contributor Jeremy Bowman has no position in any stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool recommends Ulta Salon, Cosmetics & Fragrance. The Motley Fool owns shares of Ulta Salon, Cosmetics & Fragrance. Try any of our Foolish newsletter services free for 30 days. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

Copyright © 1995 – 2013 The Motley Fool, LLC. All rights reserved. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

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Source: FULL ARTICLE at DailyFinance

Market Close: Big Winners &amp; Losers for March 15, 2013 (PGNX, HGSH, BRN, AXX, GLUU, SNMX, TISI, SUPN, GLDD, ULTA)

By 24/7 Wall St.

stock symbol ticker

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Here are today’s five biggest gaining stocks at closing:

Progenics Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ: PGNX) is up 28.7% at $4.35.

China HGS Real Estate Inc. (NASDAQ: HGSH) is up 22.7% at $6.39.

Furniture Brands International Inc. (NYSE: FBN) is up 18.9% at $1.32.

Alderon Iron Ore Corp. (NYSEMKT: AXX) is up 18% at $1.64.

Glu Mobile Inc. (NASDAQ: GLUU) is up 14.8% at $3.34.

And here are today’s five biggest losing stocks at closing:

Senomyx Inc. (NASDAQ: SNMX) is down 21.5% at $2.19.

Team Inc. (NYSE: TISI) is down 19.7% at $37.33.

Supernus Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ: SUPN) is down 19.1% at $5.58.

Great Lakes Dredge & Dock Corp. (NASDAQ: GLDD) is down 18% at $7.36.

Ulta Salon, Cosmetics & Fragrances Inc. (NASDAQ: ULTA) is down 16.3% at $74.00.

Filed under: 24/7 Wall St. Wire, HI/LOW, Market Close Tagged: AXX, BRN, GLDD, GLUU, HGSH, PGNX, SNMX, SUPN, TISI, ULTA

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Source: FULL ARTICLE at DailyFinance

Will JPMorgan Sabotage the Dow's Record Streak?

By Dan Caplinger, The Motley Fool

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At some point, the string of record highs that the Dow Jones Industrials have posted must end. Early on, it looks like today may prove to be that day, as the Dow is down 44 points, or 0.3%, just before 11 a.m. EDT, dropping back below the 14,500 level. With consumer confidence falling to its lowest level in more than a year and the Consumer Price Index having spiked upward 0.7% as expected in February due to higher gas prices, today may prove to be the day on which the Dow says eight is enough and gives up some ground.

Within the Dow, JPMorgan Chase has fallen the most, dropping 2.2% after the bank came under fire on multiple fronts. The Federal Reserve approved its plans for dividends and stock repurchases but also said it would need to submit new plans for dealing with a potential future recession within the next six months. Moreover, Senate lawmakers attacked the bank for bad risk-management, arguing that it misled investors and regulators in connection with the now-infamous “London Whale” scandal. JPMorgan has overcome controversy before, but at some point investors may lose confidence in its ability to handle repeated attacks on its reputation.

Elsewhere, VirnetX dropped another 7.6% following yesterday’s 28% loss after the company lost a key patent suit against Cisco Systems . VirnetX had enjoyed great success in winning similar cases and obtaining settlements in the past, and most investors thought Cisco would join the ranks of those paying substantial damages. With the jury having found no infringement, VirnetX will miss out on a major potential source of revenue. Cisco, meanwhile, has risen 0.5%.

Finally, Ulta Salon plunged 14.4% after providing disappointing guidance in its quarterly report last night. The company beat earnings estimates for the fourth quarter but said its first-quarter sales and earnings would fall short of what analysts had expected. Given the stock‘s high multiple, investors aren’t inclined to cut it much slack when it comes to threats to its future growth.

JPMorgan has been controversial for a while, but its shares are still arguably bargain-priced. Will the bank bounce back? To help you figure out whether JPMorgan is a buy today, I invite you to read our premium research report on the company today. Click here now for instant access!

var FoolAnalyticsData = FoolAnalyticsData || []; FoolAnalyticsData.push({ …read more
Source: FULL ARTICLE at DailyFinance

Ulta Salon Earnings: An Early Look

By Dan Caplinger, The Motley Fool

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Earnings season is winding down, with most companies already having reported their quarterly results. But there are still some companies left to report, and Ulta Salon is about to release its quarterly earnings. The key to making smart investment decisions with stocks releasing their quarterly reports is to anticipate how they’ll do before they announce results, leaving you fully prepared to respond quickly to whatever inevitable surprises arise. That way, you’ll be less likely to make an uninformed knee-jerk reaction to news that turns out to be exactly the wrong move.

Ulta Salon has found great success by combining two popular concepts in a single store: retail beauty products like cosmetics and hair-care products, along with full-service salons. Until very recently, that concept had produced an almost uninterrupted explosive uptrend for the stock. Let’s take an early look at what’s been happening with Ulta Salon over the past quarter and what we’re likely to see in its quarterly report on Thursday.

Stats on Ulta Salon

Analyst EPS Estimate

$0.98

Change From Year-Ago EPS

34%

Revenue Estimate

$753.9 million

Change From Year-Ago Revenue

29%

Earnings Beats in Past 4 Quarters

4

Source: Yahoo! Finance.

Will Ulta Salon stay pretty this quarter?
Analysts have barely budged on their calls for Ulta Salon in recent months, keeping their estimates for the just-ended quarter steady and cutting a single penny from full-year fiscal 2014 earnings per share. But the stock hasn’t been doing well, falling 10% since early December.

Ulta has done a good job with its dual salon and beauty-retail concept. By focusing on high-end products and services, Ulta has produced extremely high profit margins on its sales. Moreover, Ulta’s broad range of products gives it a competitive advantage against Estee Lauder and Elizabeth Arden , which are dependent on the success of their own single brands to remain profitable.

Shareholders have already gotten news about what this week’s quarterly results from Ulta will look like. A month ago, the company released preliminary figures that were slightly better than most analyst estimates, with a 30% jump in revenue and an 8% rise in same-store sales showing that the growth story at Ulta remains intact.

Unfortunately, Ulta lost a strong leader in former CEO Chuck Rubin, who resigned in February to head up privately held Michaels Stores. Rubin’s move left the company without a permanent CEO or CFO, given former CFO Bruce Hartman’s resignation in late 2012. Shares plunged on analyst downgrades following the move.

In the coming quarterly report, watch for Ulta to describe its strategy for finding a permanent leader to carry the company into its next growth stage. With the stock having stagnated lately, Ulta needs to move forward quickly to keep its multiyear momentum going.

The best investing approach is to choose great companies and stick with them for the long term. The Motley Fool’s free …read more
Source: FULL ARTICLE at DailyFinance

Can Ulta Meet These Numbers?

By Seth Jayson, The Motley Fool

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Ulta (NAS: ULTA) is expected to report Q4 earnings on March 14. Here’s what Wall Street wants to see:

The 10-second takeaway
Comparing the upcoming quarter to the prior-year quarter, average analyst estimates predict Ulta’s revenues will grow 29.2% and EPS will increase 34.2%.

The average estimate for revenue is $752.3 million. On the bottom line, the average EPS estimate is $0.98.

Revenue details
Last quarter, Ulta reported revenue of $505.6 million. GAAP reported sales were 22% higher than the prior-year quarter’s $413.1 million.

Source: S&P Capital IQ. Quarterly periods. Dollar amounts in millions. Non-GAAP figures may vary to maintain comparability with estimates.

EPS details
Last quarter, EPS came in at $0.59. GAAP EPS of $0.59 for Q3 were 40% higher than the prior-year quarter’s $0.42 per share.

Source: S&P Capital IQ. Quarterly periods. Non-GAAP figures may vary to maintain comparability with estimates.

Recent performance
For the preceding quarter, gross margin was 36.7%, 60 basis points better than the prior-year quarter. Operating margin was 12.1%, 140 basis points better than the prior-year quarter. Net margin was 7.5%, 100 basis points better than the prior-year quarter.

Looking ahead

The full year’s average estimate for revenue is $2.21 billion. The average EPS estimate is $2.71.

Investor sentiment
The stock has a three-star rating (out of five) at Motley Fool CAPS, with 322 members out of 368 rating the stock outperform, and 46 members rating it underperform. Among 111 CAPS All-Star picks (recommendations by the highest-ranked CAPS members), 100 give Ulta a green thumbs-up, and 11 give it a red thumbs-down.

Of Wall Street recommendations tracked by S&P Capital IQ, the average opinion on Ulta is outperform, with an average price target of $112.14.

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The article Can Ulta Meet These Numbers? originally appeared on Fool.com.


Seth Jayson had no position in any company mentioned here at the time of publication. You can view his stock holdings here. He is co-advisor of
Motley Fool Hidden Gems, which provides new small-cap ideas every month, backed by a real-money portfolio. The Motley Fool recommends Ulta Salon, Cosmetics & Fragrance. The Motley Fool owns shares of Ulta Salon, Cosmetics & Fragrance. Try any of our Foolish newsletter services free for 30 days. We …read more
Source: FULL ARTICLE at DailyFinance