Halister News

(Bloomberg) -- Ulta Beauty fell as much as 3.6% after Edward Jones earlier downgraded the stock to hold from buy with valuation above historical averages, analyst Brian Yarbrough said in a telephone interview.

• His call is unrelated to short-term earnings; management is solid, still likes the company
• "The stock has done extremely, extremely well, but it’s one of the most expensive stocks in retail"
• Growth stocks have come under Amazon pressure, and at some point Ulta Beauty comp. sales are no longer going to be rising 15% or 16%, he said; "I don’t know if that’s really factored in for the Street"
• Upside is limited with the huge run in the stock
• NOTE: April 28, Retailers Likely to See Margins Contract Further: Morgan Stanley
  • Ulta Beauty has 14 buys, 10 holds, no sells; avg PT $306 
  • ULTA to report 1Q results May 25 post-mkt

To contact the reporter on this story: Christiana Sciaudone in New York at csciaudone@bloomberg.net To contact the editors responsible for this story: Arie Shapira at ashapira3@bloomberg.net Brad Olesen