River Global Investors LLP Acquires 2,573 Shares of The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. (NYSE:EL)

River Global Investors LLP raised its holdings in shares of The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. (NYSE:EL) by 21.3% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 14,665 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 2,573 shares during the period. River Global Investors LLP’s holdings in Estée Lauder Companies were worth $1,462,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of EL. Marshall Wace LLP raised its holdings in Estée Lauder Companies by 3,065.6% during the 2nd quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 1,983,083 shares of the company’s stock valued at $211,000,000 after buying an additional 1,920,439 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Estée Lauder Companies by 6.4% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 20,686,550 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,188,832,000 after acquiring an additional 1,250,555 shares during the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Estée Lauder Companies by 36.4% during the third quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 4,041,911 shares of the company’s stock worth $402,938,000 after purchasing an additional 1,078,926 shares during the period. Independent Franchise Partners LLP grew its stake in shares of Estée Lauder Companies by 44.4% in the second quarter. Independent Franchise Partners LLP now owns 3,466,048 shares of the company’s stock worth $368,788,000 after purchasing an additional 1,066,320 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Swedbank AB bought a new stake in shares of Estée Lauder Companies in the first quarter worth about $82,664,000. 55.15% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Estée Lauder Companies Stock Down 3.6 %

EL traded down $2.41 during trading on Friday, hitting $63.90. 5,676,920 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 5,324,425. The stock has a market capitalization of $22.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 114.11, a PEG ratio of 3.82 and a beta of 1.05. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $87.37 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $103.43. The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. has a 12-month low of $62.88 and a 12-month high of $159.75. The company has a current ratio of 1.32, a quick ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.44.

Estée Lauder Companies (NYSE:EL) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported $0.14 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.09 by $0.05. Estée Lauder Companies had a return on equity of 17.31% and a net margin of 1.31%. The company had revenue of $3.36 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.37 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.11 earnings per share. Estée Lauder Companies’s revenue was down 4.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts predict that The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. will post 1.59 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Estée Lauder Companies Cuts Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 29th will be given a $0.35 dividend. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.19%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 29th. Estée Lauder Companies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 250.00%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Estée Lauder Companies

In other Estée Lauder Companies news, Director Lynn Forester sold 3,890 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $93.61, for a total value of $364,142.90. Following the transaction, the director now owns 15,209 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,423,714.49. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other news, Director Charlene Barshefsky sold 3,437 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $91.93, for a total value of $315,963.41. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 49,800 shares in the company, valued at $4,578,114. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director Lynn Forester sold 3,890 shares of Estée Lauder Companies stock in a transaction on Friday, August 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $93.61, for a total value of $364,142.90. Following the transaction, the director now owns 15,209 shares in the company, valued at $1,423,714.49. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 18,296 shares of company stock worth $1,423,366. Insiders own 12.78% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have weighed in on EL. Evercore ISI dropped their price objective on Estée Lauder Companies from $180.00 to $130.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, August 20th. Canaccord Genuity Group cut their price target on shares of Estée Lauder Companies from $100.00 to $75.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, November 1st. Telsey Advisory Group restated a “market perform” rating and issued a $105.00 price objective on shares of Estée Lauder Companies in a report on Thursday, October 31st. UBS Group reduced their price target on shares of Estée Lauder Companies from $115.00 to $104.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, August 20th. Finally, Bank of America lowered their price objective on shares of Estée Lauder Companies from $100.00 to $75.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Friday, November 1st. Nineteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $100.90.

About Estée Lauder Companies

The Estée Lauder Companies Inc manufactures, markets, and sells skin care, makeup, fragrance, and hair care products worldwide. It offers skin care products, including moisturizers, serums, cleansers, toners, body care, exfoliators, acne care and oil correctors, facial masks, and sun care products; and makeup products, such as lipsticks, lip glosses, mascaras, foundations, eyeshadows, and powders, as well as compacts, brushes, and other makeup tools.