Advisors Asset Management Inc. Raises Holdings in The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. (NYSE:EL)

Advisors Asset Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. (NYSE:EL) by 28.8% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 43,913 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 9,819 shares during the quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Estée Lauder Companies were worth $3,293,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Ameliora Wealth Management Ltd. purchased a new position in Estée Lauder Companies in the fourth quarter worth $29,000. Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators grew its holdings in Estée Lauder Companies by 68.7% in the fourth quarter. Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators now owns 388 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 158 shares during the last quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Estée Lauder Companies in the fourth quarter worth $30,000. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Estée Lauder Companies by 297.0% in the fourth quarter. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC now owns 401 shares of the company’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 300 shares during the last quarter. Finally, MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB grew its holdings 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 purchasing an additional 141 shares during the last quarter. 55.15% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Estée Lauder Companies

In other Estée Lauder Companies news, CFO Akhil Shrivastava acquired 700 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 5th. The stock was bought at an average price of $65.79 per share, with a total value of $46,053.00. Following the purchase, the chief financial officer now owns 2,381 shares in the company, valued at approximately $156,645.99. The trade was a 41.64 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Paul J. Fribourg acquired 43,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 5th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $66.35 per share, with a total value of $2,853,050.00. Following the purchase, the director now owns 430,800 shares in the company, valued at $28,583,580. This 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 corporate insiders.

Estée Lauder Companies Stock Down 1.4 %

EL stock opened at $67.04 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $24.07 billion, a P/E ratio of -34.38, a P/E/G ratio of 6.09 and a beta of 1.08. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $72.97 and a 200-day simple moving average of $78.01. The company has a quick ratio of 0.97, a current ratio of 1.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.75. The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. has a 52 week low of $62.29 and a 52 week high of $155.73.

Estée Lauder Companies (NYSE:EL) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The company reported $0.62 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.32 by $0.30. The business had revenue of $4 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.98 billion. Estée Lauder Companies had a negative net margin of 4.61% and a positive return on equity of 16.82%. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 6.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.88 earnings per share. Equities analysts forecast 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 disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Investors of record on Friday, February 28th were paid a dividend of $0.35 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 28th. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.09%. Estée Lauder Companies’s dividend payout ratio is presently -71.79%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have issued reports on EL shares. UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Estée Lauder Companies from $74.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, January 16th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on shares of Estée Lauder Companies from $85.00 to $81.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. DA Davidson reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $81.00 price objective on shares of Estée Lauder Companies in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $100.00 price objective on shares of Estée Lauder Companies in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of Estée Lauder Companies from $74.00 to $79.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. Twenty investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $86.00.

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.