AIA Group Ltd Grows Position in The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. (NYSE:EL)

AIA Group Ltd raised its position in The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. (NYSE:EL) by 4.9% during the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 8,500 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 400 shares during the quarter. AIA Group Ltd’s holdings in Estée Lauder Companies were worth $847,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in EL. Duality Advisers LP bought a new stake in shares of Estée Lauder Companies during the 1st quarter worth approximately $873,000. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Estée Lauder Companies by 60.6% during the first quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 18,091 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,789,000 after purchasing an additional 6,826 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC boosted its stake in shares of Estée Lauder Companies by 26.5% during the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 2,775 shares of the company’s stock valued at $428,000 after purchasing an additional 582 shares during the period. SG Americas Securities LLC grew its holdings in shares of Estée Lauder Companies by 130.6% in the first quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 28,896 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,454,000 after purchasing an additional 16,365 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. increased its stake in Estée Lauder Companies by 4.5% in the 1st quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. now owns 17,499 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,697,000 after buying an additional 747 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 55.15% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Estée Lauder Companies

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

Estée Lauder Companies Stock Down 3.6 %

Shares of EL opened at $63.89 on Friday. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $87.37 and a 200 day moving average price of $103.74. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.44, a quick ratio of 0.90 and a current ratio of 1.32. The stock has a market capitalization of $22.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 114.09, a PEG ratio of 2.36 and a beta of 1.05. The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. has a one year low of $62.88 and a one year high of $159.75.

Estée Lauder Companies (NYSE:EL) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported $0.14 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.09 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $3.36 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.37 billion. Estée Lauder Companies had a net margin of 1.31% and a return on equity of 17.31%. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 4.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.11 earnings per share. Equities research analysts forecast that The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. will post 2 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Estée Lauder Companies Cuts Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Investors of record on Friday, November 29th will be issued a $0.35 dividend. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.19%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 29th. Estée Lauder Companies’s dividend payout ratio is currently 471.43%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on EL shares. HSBC cut shares of Estée Lauder Companies from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $100.00 price objective for the company. in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. DA Davidson restated a “buy” rating and set a $130.00 price objective on shares of Estée Lauder Companies in a report on Tuesday, October 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut Estée Lauder Companies from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their target price for the stock from $113.00 to $74.00 in a report on Friday, November 1st. Citigroup downgraded Estée Lauder Companies from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and dropped their price target for the stock from $105.00 to $80.00 in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. Finally, Barclays decreased their price objective on Estée Lauder Companies from $136.00 to $117.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, July 19th. Nineteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Estée Lauder Companies has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $100.90.

Estée Lauder Companies 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.