Smith & Nephew plc vs Ulta Beauty Inc — how do they compare? Smith & Nephew plc trades at $30.45 (market cap $12.64B), while Ulta Beauty Inc trades at $489.47 (market cap $20.98B). The key difference: Ulta Beauty Inc is the larger of the two by market cap, and Smith & Nephew plc pays a 2.57% dividend while Ulta Beauty Inc pays none. Which is the better fit depends on your goals.
| SNN | ULTA | |
|---|---|---|
Market Cap | $12.64B | $20.98B |
Sector | Health | Consumer Cyclical |
52-Week High | $38.70 | $706.82 |
52-Week Low | $28.73 | $450.75 |
Enterprise Value | $15.41B | $23.06B |
Dividend Yield | 2.57% | — |
Signals from Pluang's Aura AI — not financial advice
SNN trades at $30.21, down 1.24% today, with a bearish technical signal and mixed earnings history. Revenue grew to $5.81B in 2024 with net income of $412M, while valuation ratios like P/E of 21.25 and P/S of 2.15 suggest moderate pricing. Recent news highlights product launches in robotics and wound care, supporting growth initiatives.
Outlook is cautiously optimistic with strong cash flow and analyst buy ratings at 27%, but risks include earnings misses and rising debt. The stock offers potential from operational improvements, though investor sentiment remains divided amid competitive pressures.
ULTA Beauty trades at $489.47, up 2.06% with a bullish technical signal despite mixed moving averages. The company maintains strong profitability with 39.33% gross margins and 47.45% ROE, though net margins have declined from 12.17% in 2023 to 10.63% in 2025. Recent Q1 2026 earnings beat expectations at $7.74 EPS versus $6.89 expected, while Q4 2025 missed. Analyst consensus remains strongly positive with 26 buy ratings and a $618.29 price target, representing 26% upside potential.
ULTA presents a compelling growth story with international expansion and digital engagement driving long-term potential. However, investors face risks from margin compression, competitive pressures in beauty retail, and volatile cash flow patterns. The stock's current valuation at 18.29x P/E appears reasonable given growth prospects, but requires monitoring of consumer spending trends and execution on strategic initiatives.
Trailing returns across standard periods
Smith & Nephew designs, manufactures, and markets orthopedic devices, sports medicine and arthroscopic technologies, and wound-care solutions. Roughly 42% of the U.K.-based firm's revenue comes from orthopedic products, and another 30% is sports medicine and ENT. The remaining 28% of revenue is from the advanced wound therapy segment. Roughly half of Smith & Nephew's total revenue comes from the United States, just over 30% is from other developed markets, and emerging markets account for the remainder.
Read more on SNN →With more than 1,300 stores and a partnership with Target, Ulta Beauty is the largest specialized beauty retailer in the U.S. The firm offers makeup (43% of 2021 sales), fragrances, skin care, and hair care products (20% of 2021 sales), and bath and body items. Ulta offers private-label products and merchandise from more than 500 vendors. It also offers salon services, including hair, makeup, skin, and brow services, in all stores. Most Ulta stores are approximately 10,000 square feet and are in suburban strip centers. Ulta was founded in 1990 and is based in Bolingbrook, Illinois.
Read more on ULTA →