Analysts Are Neutral on Top Consumer Cyclical Stocks: Ulta Beauty (ULTA), Costco (COST)
Analysts fell to the sidelines weighing in on Ulta Beauty (ULTA – Research Report) and Costco (COST – Research Report) with neutral ratings, indicating that the experts are neither bullish nor bearish on the stocks.
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Ulta Beauty (ULTA)
Barclays analyst Adrienne Yih maintained a Hold rating on Ulta Beauty on May 30 and set a price target of $485.00. The company's shares closed last Friday at $471.46.
According to TipRanks.com, Yih is a 4-star analyst with an average return of 6.3% and a 49.0% success rate. Yih covers the NA sector, focusing on stocks such as National Vision Holdings, Dick's Sporting Goods, and Canada Goose Holdings.
Ulta Beauty has an analyst consensus of Moderate Buy, with a price target consensus of $463.17, representing a -1.1% downside. In a report issued on May 15, Piper Sandler also maintained a Hold rating on the stock with a $386.00 price target.
Costco (COST)
Barclays analyst Seth Sigman maintained a Hold rating on Costco on May 30 and set a price target of $1000.00. The company's shares closed last Friday at $1040.18, close to its 52-week high of $1078.23.
According to TipRanks.com, Sigman 's ranking currently consits of 0 on a 0-5 ranking scale, with an average return of -7.3% and a 53.7% success rate. Sigman covers the NA sector, focusing on stocks such as Driven Brands Holdings, Floor & Decor Holdings, and Advance Auto Parts.
The word on The Street in general, suggests a Moderate Buy analyst consensus rating for Costco with a $1081.82 average price target, representing a 7.9% upside. In a report issued on May 29, Wells Fargo also maintained a Hold rating on the stock with a $1000.00 price target.
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Management Commentary 'As we kick off fiscal 2026, we are pleased with our first quarter performance, marked by broad-based market share gains as revenue growth outpaced category growth by ~5x, high-ROI trade investments, and continued momentum across the entire United States, creating a balanced geographic distribution. Most notably, we invested a record 6% of gross revenue into trade promotion in the quarter, up from 2% in both the fourth quarter and prior year – reflecting that on a normalized basis, our product-level margins continue to meet or exceed our expectations. A few examples of these high ROI trade investments include our successful - now branded - Publix Pub Sub Program, targeted branded sleeve programs at Ahold and our first ever digital multi-vendor mailer (MVM) at Costco, allowing us to enter all eight Costco regions simultaneously… and profitably! 'New product and customer wins further solidified our national footprint this quarter. 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These initiatives, paired with our bulk protein contracts and strong performance on the beef side of the business, helped us overdeliver our target margin profile, before accounting for trade promotion investments. 'To conclude, I am incredibly proud of the continued strengthening of our balance sheet in the quarter. We generated $6.0 million of cash flow from operations in the quarter, concurrently paying down our total debt to $4.6 million. Looking ahead, our $12 million of cash – the Company's second highest balance ever – will provide us with ample flexibility to support prospective acquisitions, further innovation, and margin expansion in the quarters ahead,' concluded Michaels. First Quarter Fiscal 2026 Financial Results Revenue for the first quarter of fiscal 2026 increased 18.2% to a record $35.3 million, as compared to $29.8 million in the same year-ago quarter. 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To participate, please use the following information: Q1 FY2026 Earnings Conference CallDate: Tuesday, June 3, 2025 Time: 4:30 p.m. Eastern time U.S. Dial-in: 1-877-451-6152International Dial-in: 1-201-389-0879Conference ID: 13753353Webcast: MAMA Q1 FY2026 Earnings Conference Call Please join at least five minutes before the start of the call to ensure timely participation. A playback of the call will be available through Sunday, August 3, 2025. To listen, please call 1-844-512-2921 within the United States and Canada or 1-412-317-6671 when calling internationally, using replay pin number 13753353. A webcast replay will also be available using the webcast link above. About Mama's Creations, Inc. Mama's Creations, Inc. (Nasdaq: MAMA) is a leading marketer and manufacturer of fresh deli prepared foods, found in over 10,000 grocery, mass, club and convenience stores nationally. The Company's broad product portfolio, born from MamaMancini's rich history in Italian foods, now consists of a variety of high quality, fresh, clean and easy to prepare foods to address the needs of both our consumers and retailers. Our vision is to become a one-stop-shop deli solutions platform, leveraging vertical integration and a diverse family of brands to offer a wide array of prepared foods to meet the changing demands of the modern consumer. For more information, please visit Use of Non-GAAP Financial Measures This press release includes the following non-GAAP measure – adjusted EBITDA, which is not a measure of financial performance under GAAP and should not be considered as an alternative to net income as a measure of financial performance. The company believes this non-GAAP measure, when considered together with the corresponding GAAP measures, provides useful information to investors and management regarding financial and business trends relating to the company's results of operations. However, this non-GAAP measure has significant limitations in that it does not reflect all the costs and other items associated with the operation of the company's business as determined in accordance with GAAP. In addition, the company's non-GAAP measures may be calculated differently and are therefore not comparable to similar measures by other companies. Therefore, investors should consider non-GAAP measures in addition to, and not as a substitute for, or superior to, measures of financial performance in accordance with GAAP. For a definition and reconciliation of EBITDA to net income, its corresponding GAAP measure, please see the reconciliation table shown in this press release below. US-GAAP NET INCOME TO ADJUSTED EBITDA RECONCILIATION(Unaudited)(in thousands) Three Months Ended April 30, 2025 2024 Net income $ 1,237 $ 553 Depreciation 554 292 Amortization 409 369 Taxes 280 179 Interest, net 58 35 Stock-based compensation 305 205 Stock & Cash Settlement Agreement - 900 Adjusted EBITDA (Non-GAAP) $ 2,843 $ 2,533 Forward-Looking Statements This press release may contain forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. Forward-looking statements include information about management's view of the Company's future expectations, plans and prospects, including future business opportunities or strategies and are generally preceded by words such as 'anticipate,' 'believe,' 'eventually,' 'expect,' 'future,' 'may,' 'look forward to,' 'plan,' 'projected,' 'should,' 'will,' and other words that convey the uncertainty of future events or outcomes. You are cautioned that such statements are subject to a multitude of known and unknown risks and uncertainties that could cause future circumstances, events, or results to differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements, including the risks that actual results may differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements as a result of various factors. Certain of these risk factors and others are included in documents the Company files with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including but not limited to, the Company's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended January 31, 2025, as well as subsequent reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The Company has based these forward-looking statements on its current expectations and assumptions about future events. While management considers these expectations and assumptions to be reasonable, they are inherently subject to significant business, economic, competitive, regulatory, and other factors, contingencies, and uncertainties, most of which are difficult to predict and many of which are beyond the Company's control. You are urged not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date they are made. Except as may be required by applicable law or regulation, the Company's does not undertake, and specifically disclaims, any obligation to update any forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances occurring after the date of such statements. Investor Relations Contact:Lucas A. ZimmermanManaging DirectorMZ Group - MZ North America(949) 259-4987MAMA@ Mama's Creations, Consolidated Balance Sheets(In thousands, except share and per share data) April 30, 2025 January 31, 2025 (Unaudited) Assets: Current Assets: Cash and cash equivalents $ 12,011 $ 7,150 Accounts receivable, net 5,805 8,131 Inventories, net 5,287 4,817 Prepaid expenses and other current assets 1,124 1,779 Total Current Assets 24,227 21,877 Property, plant, and equipment, net 9,446 9,387 Intangible assets, net 3,067 3,436 Goodwill 8,633 8,633 Operating lease right of use assets, net 6,788 3,376 Deferred tax asset 469 258 Deposits 95 95 Total Assets $ 52,725 $ 47,062 Liabilities and Stockholders' Equity: Liabilities: Current Liabilities: Accounts payable and accrued expenses $ 13,526 $ 12,052 Term loan, net of unamortized debt discount of $19 and $22, respectively 1,533 1,530 Operating lease liabilities 1,085 848 Finance leases payable 321 345 Promissory notes – related parties 2,250 2,250 Total Current Liabilities 18,715 17,025 Term loan – net of current 839 1,342 Operating lease liabilities – net of current 5,612 2,600 Finance leases payable – net of current 1,121 1,199 Total long-term liabilities 7,572 5,141 Total Liabilities 26,287 22,166 Stockholders' Equity: Series A Preferred stock, $0.00001 par value; 120,000 shares authorized; 23,400 issued, 0 shares outstanding - - Series B Preferred stock, $0.00001 par value; 200,000 shares authorized; 0 and 0 issued or outstanding - - Preferred stock, $0.00001 par value; 19,680,000 shares authorized; 0 shares issued or outstanding - - Common stock, $0.00001 par value; 250,000,000 shares authorized; 37,834,000 and 37,826,000 shares issued as of April 30, and January 31, 2025, respectively, 37,604,000 and 37,596,000 shares outstanding as of April 30, and January 31, 2025, respectively - - Additional paid-in capital 25,187 24,882 Retained earnings 1,401 164 Less: Treasury stock, 230,000 shares at cost (150 ) (150 ) Total Stockholders' Equity 26,438 24,896 Total Liabilities and Stockholders' Equity $ 52,725 $ 47,062 Mama's Creations, Consolidated Statements of Operations(Unaudited)(in thousands, except per share data) For the Three Months EndedApril 30, 2025 2024 Net sales $ 35,255 $ 29,838 Costs of sales 26,071 22,375 Gross profit 9,184 7,463 Operating expenses: Research and development 73 104 Selling, general and administrative expenses 7,533 6,586 Total operating expenses 7,606 6,690 Income from operations 1,578 773 Other income (expenses) Interest expense (88 ) (127 ) Interest income 30 92 Amortization of debt discount (3 ) (6 ) Total other expenses (61 ) (41 ) Net income before income tax provision 1,517 732 Income tax expense (280 ) (179 ) Net income $ 1,237 $ 553 Net income per common share – basic $ 0.03 $ 0.01 – diluted $ 0.03 $ 0.01 Weighted average common shares outstanding – basic 37,597 37,259 – diluted 39,378 39,328 Mama's Creations, Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows(Unaudited)(in thousands) For the Three Months Ended April 30, 2025 2024 CASH FLOWS FROM OPERATING ACTIVITIES: Net income $ 1,237 $ 553 Adjustments to reconcile net income to net cash provided by operating activities: Depreciation 554 292 Amortization of debt discount 3 6 Amortization of right of use assets 293 134 Amortization of intangibles 370 380 Stock-based compensation 305 205 Change in deferred tax asset (211 ) 172 Changes in operating assets and liabilities: Accounts receivable 2,326 (220 ) Inventories (470 ) 293 Prepaid expenses and other current assets 382 145 Accounts payable and accrued expenses 1,473 1,832 Operating lease liability (257 ) (151 ) Net Cash Provided by Operating Activities 6,005 3,641 CASH FLOWS FROM INVESTING ACTIVITIES: Purchase of fixed assets (539 ) (1,144 ) Net Cash (Used in) Investing Activities (539 ) (1,144 ) CASH FLOWS FROM FINANCING ACTIVITIES: Repayment of term loan (503 ) (388 ) Repayment of finance lease obligations (102 ) (95 ) Proceeds from exercise of stock options - 7 Net Cash (Used in) Financing Activities (605 ) (476 ) Net Increase in Cash 4,861 2,021 Cash and cash equivalents at beginning of period 7,150 11,022 Cash and cash equivalents at end of period $ 12,011 $ 13,043 SUPPLEMENTARY CASH FLOW INFORMATION: Cash paid during the period for: Income taxes $ 5 $ - Interest $ 82 $ 114 SUPPLEMENTARY DISCLOSURE OF NON-CASH INVESTING AND FINANCING ACTIVITIES: Finance lease asset additions $ - $ 169 Right of use asset recognized $ 4,156 $ 873 Write-off of right of use asset $ 451 $ 897 Receipt of fixed assets for deposits previously paid $ 74 $ - Error while retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error while retrieving data Error while retrieving data Error while retrieving data Error while retrieving data
