The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. (NYSE:EL) Shares Bought by Daiwa Securities Group Inc.

Daiwa Securities Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. (NYSE:EL) by 8.8% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 30,867 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 2,488 shares during the quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc.’s holdings in Estée Lauder Companies were worth $2,314,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of EL. Peterson Wealth Services raised its stake in shares of Estée Lauder Companies by 9.8% during the 4th quarter. Peterson Wealth Services now owns 1,506 shares of the company’s stock worth $113,000 after buying an additional 134 shares in the last quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB raised its position in Estée Lauder Companies by 42.1% in the fourth quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 476 shares of the company’s stock worth $36,000 after acquiring an additional 141 shares in the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its holdings in Estée Lauder Companies by 8.7% in the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,853 shares of the company’s stock valued at $139,000 after acquiring an additional 148 shares during the period. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Estée Lauder Companies by 47.4% during the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 479 shares of the company’s stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 154 shares during the period. Finally, Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators increased its holdings in shares of Estée Lauder Companies by 68.7% in the 4th quarter. Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators now owns 388 shares of the company’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 158 shares in the last quarter. 55.15% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Estée Lauder Companies Stock Up 2.7 %

Shares of Estée Lauder Companies stock opened at $66.64 on Friday. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $73.54 and its 200 day simple moving average is $78.84. The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. has a 52-week low of $62.29 and a 52-week high of $155.73. The firm has a market cap of $23.92 billion, a PE ratio of -34.17, a P/E/G ratio of 6.09 and a beta of 1.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.75, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a current ratio of 1.37.

Estée Lauder Companies (NYSE:EL) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The company reported $0.62 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.32 by $0.30. The business had revenue of $4 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.98 billion. Estée Lauder Companies had a positive return on equity of 16.82% and a negative net margin of 4.61%. Estée Lauder Companies’s revenue for the quarter was down 6.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.88 EPS. On average, analysts predict that The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. will post 1.36 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Estée Lauder Companies Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Investors of record on Friday, February 28th will be issued a dividend of $0.35 per share. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.10%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 28th. Estée Lauder Companies’s payout ratio is presently -71.79%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO Akhil Shrivastava bought 700 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 5th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $65.79 per share, for a total transaction of $46,053.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 2,381 shares in the company, valued at $156,645.99. The trade was a 41.64 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Paul J. Fribourg bought 43,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 5th. The shares were bought at an average price of $66.35 per share, with a total value of $2,853,050.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 430,800 shares in the company, valued at approximately $28,583,580. This trade represents a 11.09 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 12.78% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

EL has been the topic of a number of research reports. UBS Group upped their price target on Estée Lauder Companies from $74.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, January 16th. Telsey Advisory Group reiterated a “market perform” rating and issued a $76.00 target price on shares of Estée Lauder Companies in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. DA Davidson restated a “buy” rating and set a $81.00 price objective on shares of Estée Lauder Companies in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their target price on Estée Lauder Companies from $80.00 to $78.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Finally, Barclays lowered their price objective on Estée Lauder Companies from $71.00 to $64.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Twenty investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $86.00.

Estée Lauder Companies Company Profile

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.