High Traffic Drives Higher Sales for Ulta Beauty

Ulta Beauty Inc. posted continued gains in sales and earnings for its fourth fiscal quarter.
For the quarter, net sales were up 9.7 percent year-over-year to $2.1 billion, with net income up 3.1 percent to $214.7 million. E-commerce sales were up 25.1 percent in the quarter. Salon sales increased 4.7 percent to $77.2 million.
"This performance reflects an acceleration in comparable sales in our retail stores, primarily driven by traffic. We continued to gain significant share across all major categories, particularly with digitally native brands where Ulta Beauty is often the only point of distribution in brick-and-mortar. Solid execution by our merchandising, store operations, e-commerce, marketing, supply chain and systems teams drove healthy sales growth and a differentiated guest experience throughout the important holiday season."
For the full year, net sales were up 14.1 percent, to $6.7 billion, up from $5.9 billion the prior year. Net income increased 18.6 percent, to $658.6 million.
In 2019, Ulta plans to open 80 new stores. Sales are expected to grow in the low double-digits percentage range.
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