Steep online sales growth continues to exceed expectations for beauty supplies retailer Ulta Beauty.
In its fourth quarter earnings filing, Ulta, No. 196 in the Internet Retailer 2015 Top 500 Guide, reported fiscal 2015 online sales of $221.1 million, up 47.5% year-over-year from $149.9 million in 2014. In 2015, e-commerce accounted for 5.6% of sales, compared to 4.6% last year.
During the fiscal fourth quarter, Ulta reported online sales of $94.8 million, up 44.3% from $65.7 million last year. E-commerce accounted for 7.5% of sales during Q4 2015, compared to 6.3% last year.
“E-commerce top-line growth and profitability were better than planned, driven by improved fulfillment capabilities and execution during the holiday season,” said CEO Mary Dillon during the retailer’s fourth quarter conference call with analysts, according to a transcript from Seeking Alpha. “Significant improvements in fulfillment speed and customer satisfaction during holiday resulted in stronger than expected sales and much better profitability compared to year ago.”
For the fiscal fourth quarter ended Jan. 30, Ulta reported:
- Net revenue of $1.268 billion, up 21.0% from $1.048 billion last year.
- Net income of $107.8 million, up 23.5% from $87.3 million .
- Comparable store sales growth including e-commerce of 12.5%, compared to a growth of 11.1%.
For fiscal 2015, Ulta reported:
- Net revenue of $3.924 billion, up 21.1% from $3.241 billion last year.
- Net income of $320.0 million, up 24.5% from $257.1 million.
- Comparable store sales growth including e-commerce of 11.8%, compared to a growth of 9.9%.