KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 8 (Bernama) -- Bursa Malaysia closed almost flat on Tuesday as buying interest rotated away from index heavyweights towards smaller-cap construction stocks, with sentiment affected by geopolitical uncertainty, said an analyst. At 5 pm, the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) eased 0.39 of a point to 1,714.40 from Monday’s close of 1,714.79. The benchmark index opened 1.65 points lower at 1,713.14 and moved between 1,710.44 and 1,714.50 throughout the trading session. The broader market was almost evenly balanced, with decliners leading gainers 548 to 546, while 598 counters were unchanged, 1,107 were untraded and 25 were suspended. Turnover expanded to 4.13 billion units valued at RM3.14 billion from 3.60 billion units valued at RM2.45 billion on Monday.
Shares of Ulta Beauty (ULTA.US) dropped 2.6% to $334.33 on Thursday following a downgrade by William Blair analyst Dylan Carden, highlighting concerns over the company’s shift to online commerce and broader challenges in the beauty industry. Key Highlights Stock Performance: Ulta shares are down 31.9% year-to-date , on track for their worst year since 2008 , when they fell 51.72%. Analyst Downgrade: Carden downgraded Ulta from Outperform to Market Perform after reassessing expectations set during the company’s Analyst Day on Oct. 16. Analyst Concerns Overoptimistic Projections for 2025: Consensus estimates for 2025 comparable sales and operating margin assume an early inflection in the beauty market that may not materialize. Impact of E-Commerce: The shift to online shopping poses a long-term threat to Ulta’s retail stores, introducing “heightened, more dynamic competition” and potential market share erosion. As prestige brands expand online , Ulta risks either losing share to c...