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Compare Stocks › BAC vs ULTA

Bank of America Corporation (BAC) vs Ulta Beauty, Inc. (ULTA)

BAC
Bank of America Corporation
$47.01
VS
ULTA
Ulta Beauty, Inc.
$534.10

Rewards

BAC
  • ★Each dollar of retained earnings has created $2.37 of market value — management is an exceptional capital allocator.
  • ★PEG ratio of 0.58 suggests the stock is undervalued relative to its growth rate — paying less than 1x for each unit of earnings growth.
ULTA
  • ★Ulta Beauty, Inc. has maintained ROIC above 15% for 4 consecutive years, indicating a durable competitive advantage.
  • ★Ulta Beauty, Inc. scores 89/100 on the Economic Moat Score (Wide Moat), with roic consistency as the strongest competitive dimension.
  • ★Return on equity has consistently exceeded 20% over 4 years, indicating efficient use of shareholder capital.

Risks

BAC
  • ⚠Gross margin of 0.0% is low, suggesting a competitive or commodity-like market with limited pricing power.
  • ⚠Bank of America Corporation scores only 20/100 on the Economic Moat Score, suggesting limited durable competitive advantages.
  • ⚠Altman Z-Score of 0.22 places the company in the distress zone — financial patterns resemble those of companies that experienced bankruptcy.
ULTA

    Key Valuation Metrics

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    BAC
    ULTA
    Valuation
    N/A
    Free Cash Flow
    $900.10M
    N/A
    FCF Yield
    3.76%
    12.34
    Trailing P/E
    20.83
    9.49
    Forward P/E
    16.96
    Quality & Moat
    4.61%
    ROIC
    24.02%
    N/A
    ROE
    41.15%
    0.00%
    Gross Margin
    39.10%
    0.58
    PEG Ratio
    N/A
    Balance Sheet Safety
    N/A
    Debt / Equity
    0.78
    N/A
    Interest Coverage
    N/A
    N/A
    Net Debt / EBITDA
    0.92
    2.38%
    Dividend Yield
    N/A
    BAC: 2Ties: 1ULTA: 2
    BACULTA

    Historical Fundamentals

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    BAC

    Price ÷ Earnings Per Share — how many years of current earnings you're paying for at today's price. Lower P/E may indicate undervaluation.

    ULTA

    Price ÷ Earnings Per Share — how many years of current earnings you're paying for at today's price. Lower P/E may indicate undervaluation.

    Price ÷ Earnings Per Share — how many years of current earnings you're paying for at today's price. Lower P/E may indicate undervaluation.

    $1 Retained Earnings Test

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    BAC
    $2.37
    created per $1 retained over 3 years
    Exceptional Value Creator
    Σ Retained
    $55.63B
    Δ Market Cap
    +$131.83B
    Buffett's "$1 Test": For every $1 of earnings retained, has management created at least $1 of market value?
    > $1 created per $1 retained = Value Creator · < $1 created = Value Destroyer
    ULTA
    $0.88
    created per $1 retained over 3 years
    Mediocre Allocator
    Σ Retained
    $3.73B
    Δ Market Cap
    +$3.27B
    Buffett's "$1 Test": For every $1 of earnings retained, has management created at least $1 of market value?
    > $1 created per $1 retained = Value Creator · < $1 created = Value Destroyer

    Buffett's "$1 Test": For every $1 of earnings retained, has management created at least $1 of market value?
    > $1 created per $1 retained = Value Creator · < $1 created = Value Destroyer

    Discounted Cash Flow (DCF) Analysis

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    BAC
    64.3% Margin of Safety
    Price is 64.3% below estimated fair value
    Current Price: $47.01
    Fair Value: $131.82
    Strongly undervalued
    Undervalued
    Fairly valued
    Overvalued
    Strongly overvalued
    ULTA
    17.1% Margin of Safety
    Price is 17.1% below estimated fair value
    Current Price: $534.10
    Fair Value: $644.58
    Strongly undervalued
    Undervalued
    Fairly valued
    Overvalued
    Strongly overvalued

    Reverse DCF — Market-Implied Growth

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    BAC

    Requires positive FCF to compute implied growth rate.

    ULTA

    What growth rate is the market pricing in at $534?

    +8.6%
    Market-Implied Owner Earnings Growth
    Standard FCF implies +12.5%

    The market implies +8.6% Owner Earnings growth, roughly in line with history — reasonably priced.

    Standard FCF implies +12.5%, reflecting ongoing growth investment.

    Economic Moat Score

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    BAC
    20/100
    No Moat
    70+ Wide · 40-69 Narrow · <40 None

    No durable moat detected, though revenue predictability shows some competitive positioning. The business lacks consistent evidence of sustainable advantages.

    Composite score measuring competitive advantage durability across four dimensions: returns above cost of capital, pricing power stability, revenue predictability, and capital efficiency. Based on 4 years of fundamental data.
    ULTA
    89/100
    Wide Moat
    70+ Wide · 40-69 Narrow · <40 None

    Wide moat with strength across all dimensions. ROIC Consistency is the standout factor.

    Composite score measuring competitive advantage durability across four dimensions: returns above cost of capital, pricing power stability, revenue predictability, and capital efficiency. Based on 4 years of fundamental data.

    Forensic Accounting

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    BAC
    -2.31
    Unlikely Manipulator
    Above -1.78 = likely manipulator · -2.22 to -1.78 = grey zone

    M-Score Trend

    Beneish's 8-variable model estimates the probability of earnings manipulation. An M-Score above -1.78 signals elevated risk — companies in this range have historically been 3-5× more likely to be manipulating earnings. Scores between -2.22 and -1.78 fall in a grey zone warranting further investigation.
    ULTA
    -2.56
    Unlikely Manipulator
    Above -1.78 = likely manipulator · -2.22 to -1.78 = grey zone

    M-Score Trend

    Beneish's 8-variable model estimates the probability of earnings manipulation. An M-Score above -1.78 signals elevated risk — companies in this range have historically been 3-5× more likely to be manipulating earnings. Scores between -2.22 and -1.78 fall in a grey zone warranting further investigation.

    Beneish's 8-variable model estimates the probability of earnings manipulation. An M-Score above -1.78 signals elevated risk — companies in this range have historically been 3-5× more likely to be manipulating earnings. Scores between -2.22 and -1.78 fall in a grey zone warranting further investigation.

    Ownership Breakdown

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    BAC
    Insiders 7.3%Institutions 71.2%Retail & Other 21.5%
    No. of Institutional Holders4,445
    High insider ownership aligns management incentives with shareholders — a key signal in Buffett-style analysis. Institutional concentration can indicate smart-money conviction but also crowding risk.
    ULTA
    Insiders 0.5%Institutions 100.2%
    No. of Institutional Holders1,581
    High insider ownership aligns management incentives with shareholders — a key signal in Buffett-style analysis. Institutional concentration can indicate smart-money conviction but also crowding risk.

    High insider ownership aligns management incentives with shareholders. Institutional concentration can indicate smart-money conviction but also crowding risk.

    Insider Buying Activity

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    BAC
    0
    Buys (3M)
    0
    Buys (12M)
    No open market insider purchases found.
    Open market purchases · includes direct & indirect ownership · excludes option exercises
    ULTA
    0
    Buys (3M)
    0
    Buys (12M)
    STEELMAN KECIA
    Chief Executive Officer
    $499,528
    @ $346.89 · 2025-03-20
    Open market purchases · includes direct & indirect ownership · excludes option exercises

    Open market purchases · includes direct & indirect ownership · excludes option exercises.

    Insider Selling Activity

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    BAC
    5
    Sells (3M)
    5
    Sells (12M)
    Total value (12M): $20.17M
    MENSAH BERNARD AMPONSAH
    Officer
    $4.41M
    @ $46.94 · 2026-03-12
    SCRIVENER THOMAS M
    Officer
    $2.49M
    @ $49.82 · 2026-03-05
    BRONSTEIN SHERI B
    Officer
    $2.99M
    @ $49.91 · 2026-03-05
    ATHANASIA DEAN C
    President
    $6.86M
    @ $50.21 · 2026-03-03
    BORTHWICK ALASTAIR M.
    Chief Financial Officer
    $3.42M
    @ $50.24 · 2026-02-27
    MENSAH BERNARD AMPONSAH
    Officer
    $3.66M
    @ $39.80 · 2024-08-27
    HANS LINDSAY D
    Officer
    $402,410
    @ $36.91 · 2024-08-05
    Direct ownership only · excludes indirect, option exercises, planned (10b5-1) sales & derivatives
    ULTA
    0
    Sells (3M)
    2
    Sells (12M)
    Total value (12M): $597,199
    SMITH MICHAEL C
    Director
    $264,215
    @ $528.43 · 2025-09-04
    CARO JODI J
    General Counsel
    $332,984
    @ $369.16 · 2025-04-01
    HALLIGAN CATHERINE ANN
    Director
    $39,008
    @ $390.08 · 2024-07-02
    CARO JODI J
    General Counsel
    $252,639
    @ $388.68 · 2024-06-25
    MRKONIC GEORGE R JR
    Director
    $154,568
    @ $389.34 · 2024-06-04
    Direct ownership only · excludes indirect, option exercises, planned (10b5-1) sales & derivatives

    Direct ownership only · excludes indirect, option exercises, planned (10b5-1) sales & derivatives.

    🎭 Mr. Market's Mood

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    BAC
    FearGreed
    😐Neutral(47/100)

    "Market is pricing this stock without strong emotion in either direction"

    Composite sentiment score based on 6 market signals. Inspired by Buffett's "Mr. Market" allegory — fear = potential opportunity, greed = potential risk. Must be used alongside fundamental analysis, not in isolation.
    ULTA
    FearGreed
    😨Fear(28/100)

    "Market is pessimistic — investigate whether fears are temporary or structural"

    Composite sentiment score based on 6 market signals. Inspired by Buffett's "Mr. Market" allegory — fear = potential opportunity, greed = potential risk. Must be used alongside fundamental analysis, not in isolation.

    Composite sentiment score based on market signals. Inspired by Buffett’s "Mr. Market" allegory — fear = potential opportunity, greed = potential risk. Must be used alongside fundamental analysis, not in isolation.

    ⚖️ Buffett Signal

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    BAC
    ⚪Awaiting DCF Data

    The Buffett Signal cross-references market sentiment with DCF valuation. Configure the DCF Analysis above to generate a signal.

    DCF Margin of Safety: N/AMr. Market's Mood: Neutral (47)
    ULTA
    ⚪Awaiting DCF Data

    The Buffett Signal cross-references market sentiment with DCF valuation. Configure the DCF Analysis above to generate a signal.

    DCF Margin of Safety: N/AMr. Market's Mood: Fear (28)
    View BAC Full AnalysisView ULTA Full Analysis