38,135 The Estee Lauder Companies Inc. $EL Shares Sold by Eurizon Capital SGR S.p.A.

Eurizon Capital SGR S.p.A. reduced its holdings in The Estee Lauder Companies Inc. (NYSE:EL) by 9.6% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 360,006 shares of the company’s stock after selling 38,135 shares during the quarter. Eurizon Capital SGR S.p.A.’s holdings in Estee Lauder Companies were worth $33,403,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Fifth Third Bancorp lifted its holdings in Estee Lauder Companies by 1.6% in the third quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 39,061 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,624,000 after acquiring an additional 633 shares during the period. King Luther Capital Management Corp grew its stake in shares of Estee Lauder Companies by 0.9% during the 3rd quarter. King Luther Capital Management Corp now owns 38,621 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,583,000 after purchasing an additional 348 shares during the period. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System increased its holdings in shares of Estee Lauder Companies by 16.8% in the 3rd quarter. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System now owns 15,304 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,420,000 after purchasing an additional 2,204 shares in the last quarter. Joel Isaacson & Co. LLC increased its holdings in shares of Estee Lauder Companies by 1.0% in the 3rd quarter. Joel Isaacson & Co. LLC now owns 23,781 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,206,000 after purchasing an additional 230 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Estee Lauder Companies in the third quarter valued at about $5,427,000. 55.15% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Estee Lauder Companies Price Performance

Shares of NYSE EL opened at $111.69 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $40.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.98, a PEG ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 1.23. The Estee Lauder Companies Inc. has a 52 week low of $66.22 and a 52 week high of $121.64. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $101.80 and its 200 day moving average price is $91.59. The company has a current ratio of 1.25, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.67.

Estee Lauder Companies (NYSE:EL) last posted its earnings results on Monday, November 2nd. The company reported $0.72 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.51 by $0.21. The firm had revenue of $3.72 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.65 billion. Estee Lauder Companies had a net margin of 2.41% and a return on equity of 26.99%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.32 EPS. As a group, research analysts forecast that The Estee Lauder Companies Inc. will post 3.44 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Estee Lauder Companies Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 30th will be paid a dividend of $0.35 per share. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, November 30th. Estee Lauder Companies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 140.00%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Estee Lauder Companies

In related news, VP Rashida La Lande sold 7,766 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $103.32, for a total value of $802,383.12. Following the sale, the vice president owned 14,357 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,483,365.24. This represents a 35.10% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Charlene Barshefsky sold 3,775 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $98.82, for a total value of $373,045.50. Following the sale, the director owned 50,971 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,036,954.22. This trade represents a 6.90% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 177,357 shares of company stock worth $18,741,319. 11.54% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently commented on the stock. HSBC boosted their price objective on shares of Estee Lauder Companies from $87.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, August 20th. TD Cowen lifted their price target on shares of Estee Lauder Companies from $100.00 to $115.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, October 30th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on Estee Lauder Companies from $112.00 to $118.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 3rd. Citigroup upped their price target on Estee Lauder Companies from $121.00 to $132.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday. Finally, China Intl Cap raised Estee Lauder Companies to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Sunday, August 30th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Buy rating, fourteen have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $110.73.

About Estee Lauder Companies

The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. is a global prestige beauty company founded in 1946 by Estée and Joseph Lauder. Based in New York City, it develops, markets and sells beauty products under a portfolio of brands, including Estée Lauder, Clinique, M·A·C, La Mer, Aveda and Jo Malone London. The company’s products span skin care, makeup, fragrance and hair care. It reaches consumers through department stores, specialty retailers, its own stores and websites, and other online and travel-retail channels.