The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. (NYSE:EL) Position Reduced by Fulton Bank N.A.

Fulton Bank N.A. cut its position in shares of The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. (NYSE:EL) by 0.7% in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 6,498 shares of the company’s stock after selling 49 shares during the quarter. Fulton Bank N.A.’s holdings in The Estée Lauder Companies were worth $1,890,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Legacy Wealth Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of The Estée Lauder Companies in the 4th quarter valued at about $876,000. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale increased its holdings in The Estée Lauder Companies by 30.1% in the fourth quarter. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale now owns 119,121 shares of the company’s stock worth $31,132,000 after buying an additional 27,595 shares during the last quarter. SOA Wealth Advisors LLC. acquired a new position in The Estée Lauder Companies in the fourth quarter worth approximately $783,000. TRU Independence Asset Management 2 LLC acquired a new position in The Estée Lauder Companies in the fourth quarter worth approximately $57,000. Finally, Encompass Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in The Estée Lauder Companies in the fourth quarter worth approximately $57,000. Institutional investors own 54.98% of the company’s stock.

Shares of NYSE EL opened at $295.34 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $107.14 billion, a PE ratio of 179.96, a PEG ratio of 3.76 and a beta of 0.87. The business has a fifty day moving average of $289.05 and a two-hundred day moving average of $255.31. The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. has a 52-week low of $156.31 and a 52-week high of $299.74. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.10, a quick ratio of 1.39 and a current ratio of 1.85.

The Estée Lauder Companies (NYSE:EL) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 4th. The company reported $2.61 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the Zacks’ consensus estimate of $1.69 by $0.92. The company had revenue of $4.85 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.49 billion. The Estée Lauder Companies had a return on equity of 32.72% and a net margin of 4.38%. The business’s revenue was up 5.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $2.11 earnings per share. Analysts predict that The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. will post 5.24 earnings per share for the current year.

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 26th were paid a $0.53 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 25th. This represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.72%. The Estée Lauder Companies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 51.46%.

A number of equities analysts recently commented on EL shares. DA Davidson increased their price objective on The Estée Lauder Companies from $320.00 to $348.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 2nd. Smith Barney Citigroup increased their price objective on The Estée Lauder Companies from $239.00 to $258.00 in a report on Monday, December 28th. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded The Estée Lauder Companies from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $290.00 to $340.00 in a report on Tuesday, March 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded The Estée Lauder Companies from an “underweight” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $208.00 to $299.00 in a report on Monday, February 8th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein began coverage on The Estée Lauder Companies in a report on Tuesday, January 19th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $311.00 price target on the stock. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. The Estée Lauder Companies has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $283.55.

In related news, major shareholder Lal Family Partners Lp sold 2,000,000 shares of The Estée Lauder Companies stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $282.19, for a total value of $564,380,000.00. Also, Director Irvine O. Hockaday, Jr. sold 3,000 shares of The Estée Lauder Companies stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $295.55, for a total value of $886,650.00. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 2,114,149 shares of company stock valued at $597,578,500. 13.95% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

About The Estée Lauder Companies

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

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