Sally Beauty Holdings, Inc. (SBH)

In the past six months, Sally Beauty Holdings' stock experienced several notable events. The company reported its Q4 2025 earnings, beating analyst estimates for both EPS and revenue. Q4 comparable sales were up 1.3%, and revenue also rose by 1.3% to $947 million. For fiscal year 2026, Sally Beauty projected net sales of $3.71-$3.77 billion with comparable sales flat to +1%, and adjusted EPS of $2.00-$2.10. The company plans to allocate 50% of its cash flow to share buybacks, with an expectation to buy back 6.7 million shares in 2026. Insider trading activity included sales by Chief Accounting Officer Kim McIntosh and Chief Legal Officer Scott Sherman. Conversely, independent directors Max Rangel and Debra Perelman, along with CEO Denise Paulonis and Chairman Diana Ferguson, made stock purchases. As of January 6, 2026, the share price was $15.21, representing a 40.83% increase from January 7, 2025. Analyst ratings as of January 14, 2026, show a consensus "Hold" recommendation, with an average 12-month price objective of $14.60.

The beauty industry, including Sally Beauty Holdings, experiences demand seasonality influenced by weather conditions, emotional changes, and holidays. Consumer preferences shift throughout the year, leading to varying demands for specific products. Spring and summer typically see increased demand for lightweight foundations, SPF products, and bright colors, while fall and winter bring a focus on richer moisturizers, deeper makeup hues, and festive gift sets. Holiday seasons can lead to a surge in demand for products and services. This seasonality requires beauty brands to adapt their product lineups, marketing campaigns, and inventory management to cater to changing consumer needs.

Sally Beauty Holdings, Inc. operates in the Specialty Retail sector and Personal Products industry, offering hair color, hair care, nails, and skin care products through Sally Beauty Supply stores. The company's products include proprietary brands and third-party professional lines. The Beauty Systems Group distributes professionally branded products exclusively to professional stylists and salons.

Sally Beauty Holdings, Inc. has a significant international presence, operating over 4,000 stores globally, including approximately 132 to 200 franchised units. Its operations span across the United States, Puerto Rico, the United Kingdom, Belgium, Canada, Chile, Mexico, Peru, France, Ireland, Spain, Germany, and the Netherlands.

In the past year, Sally Beauty Holdings has focused on enhancing its brand reputation through several strategic initiatives. The company launched a "Brand Refresh" designed to evolve Sally Beauty into a more dynamic beauty powerhouse and a go-to destination for brand and product discovery. Sally Beauty has also been exploring expansion into skincare, spa, and cosmetics. Partnerships have played a role, with the company being selected by Madison Reed to expand its store presence into Sally Beauty stores nationwide and on SallyBeauty.com in April 2025. In March 2025, Sally Beauty partnered with Uber Technologies to launch an extensive product selection on the Uber Eats platform. The "Licensed Colorist on Demand" program has seen significant engagement, with approximately 5,000 appointments per week by December 2025, supporting DIY customers.

Sally Beauty Holdings, Inc. has significant institutional ownership, with 531 institutional owners holding a total of 143,891,331 shares. Major institutional shareholders include BlackRock, Inc., Vanguard Group Inc, Schroder Investment Management Group, iShares Core S&P Small-Cap ETF (IJR), Dimensional Fund Advisors Lp, Wasatch Advisors Inc, State Street Corp, Fisher Asset Management, LLC, Victory Capital Management Inc, and Fmr Llc. Individual insiders own approximately 1.1% of the company's shares. Carol L. Bernick is noted as the largest individual shareholder, owning 11.74 million shares, representing 12.05% of the company.