Ulta Beauty, Inc. (NASDAQ: ULTA) will release its financial results for the second quarter of fiscal year 2026 on Thursday, August 27, 2026, after the market closes. The company plans to host a webcast and conference call at 4:30 p.m. EDT / 3:30 p.m. CDT to discuss the quarterly performance.

Investors can access information about Ulta Beauty’s financial results, including a link to the live webcast, on the company’s Investor Relations website at ulta.com/investor . An archived webcast will also be available for a limited time following the event.

Event Details

Participants can register for the live event at q2-2026-ulta-beauty-earnings-conference-call.open-exchange.net .

About Ulta Beauty

Ulta Beauty is the largest specialty beauty retailer in the U.S. and a leading destination for cosmetics, fragrance, skin care, hair care, wellness and salon services. Since opening its first store in 1990, the company has grown to more than 1,500 stores across the U.S. It redefined beauty retail by bringing together All Things Beauty. All in One Place®.

With an expansive product assortment, professional salon services, and its Ulta Beauty Rewards loyalty program, the company delivers seamless, personalized experiences across stores, Ulta.com and the Ulta Beauty App. Ulta Beauty is also expanding its presence internationally through its subsidiary, Space NK, a luxury beauty retailer operating in the U.K. and Ireland, its joint venture in Mexico, and its franchise in the Middle East.

Ulta Beauty Inc faces a structural transition as its shop-in-shop partnership with Target Corp winds down in August, but Bank of America Securities Global Research analyst Lorraine Hutchinson views the separation as a catalyst for incremental revenue growth rather than a loss. Hutchinson reiterated a Buy rating and a $685 price forecast on Ulta stock on Wednesday, arguing that the specialty retailer can successfully recapture a portion of the beauty spending that previously flowed through Target locations. This shift is expected to add 100 to 315 basis points to Ulta’s annual revenue growth starting in the third quarter of 2026, leveraging the company’s existing store footprint and digital enhancements to convert former shop-in-shop shoppers into higher-value standalone visitors.

The financial impact of this transition hinges on the recapture of an estimated $650 million in gross merchandise value (GMV) that previously sat on Target Corp’s profit and loss statement. Because these sales will now register directly against Ulta’s comparable store sales, any volume redirected to Ulta’s standalone channels represents pure incremental growth. BofA Securities modeled three potential win-back scenarios to quantify this upside:

Hutchinson noted that recaptured spending is worth approximately three times more to Ulta in EBIT than the royalty stream it replaces. Consequently, the company needs to recover only about one-third of the lost GMV to maintain flat operating profit, with any additional recovery providing further upside. BofA assumes these recaptured sales will convert at a 29% incremental operating margin, benefiting from the leverage of Ulta’s existing infrastructure.

What the Numbers Show

The divergence between the royalty-based model and the direct sales model highlights a significant margin expansion opportunity for Ulta Beauty. Under the previous arrangement, Ulta earned royalties on GMV that remained on Target’s books, limiting visibility and margin contribution. By shifting to a direct sales model, even partial recapture yields disproportionate EBIT benefits due to higher margin retention. The analysis suggests that Ulta does not need to win back the entire $650 million GMV to neutralize the impact; recovering just ~$217 million (one-third) suffices for operating profit stability, creating a low-risk, high-reward dynamic for the remainder.

Ulta’s ability to execute this win-back strategy is supported by strong geographic overlap with Target locations and ongoing investments in loyalty data and fulfillment speed. The retailer has implemented Ship-from-Store capabilities in over 1,000 locations and partnered with Uber Eats to cover more than 1,500 stores, helping mitigate competitive pressures from Amazon. These digital enhancements allow Ulta to capture demand efficiently without requiring new capital expenditure for physical expansion.

Furthermore, the changing assortment strategy at Target creates a competitive gap that favors Ulta. As Target expands its Target Beauty Studio to 600 stores in August with a mass-to-prestige lineup, BofA notes that Ulta represented under 5% of Target’s $13 billion beauty business. The analyst concluded that Ulta shops likely offered too much prestige product for the average Target customer, positioning Ulta to effectively recapture prestige-focused beauty consumers who may have felt underserved by Target’s broader, mass-oriented approach. At the time of publication on Wednesday, Ulta Beauty shares were up 1.40% at $508.54.