Hartford Financial Management Inc. Cuts Stock Holdings in The Estee Lauder Companies Inc. (NYSE:EL)

Hartford Financial Management Inc. lowered its stake in shares of The Estee Lauder Companies Inc. (NYSE:EL) by 8.2% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 9,099 shares of the company’s stock after selling 816 shares during the quarter. Hartford Financial Management Inc.’s holdings in Estee Lauder Companies were worth $601,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of EL. Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators increased its position in shares of Estee Lauder Companies by 68.7% during the fourth quarter. Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators now owns 388 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 158 shares during the period. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in Estee Lauder Companies by 47.4% in the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 479 shares of the company’s stock valued at $36,000 after buying an additional 154 shares during the last quarter. CVA Family Office LLC increased its holdings in Estee Lauder Companies by 116.2% in the first quarter. CVA Family Office LLC now owns 668 shares of the company’s stock valued at $44,000 after buying an additional 359 shares during the last quarter. Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA purchased a new position in Estee Lauder Companies in the fourth quarter valued at $50,000. Finally, Farther Finance Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Estee Lauder Companies by 41.0% in the first quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 787 shares of the company’s stock valued at $53,000 after buying an additional 229 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 55.15% of the company’s stock.

Estee Lauder Companies Price Performance

Shares of EL opened at $74.69 on Thursday. The Estee Lauder Companies Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $48.37 and a fifty-two week high of $115.82. The company has a market capitalization of $26.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -30.86, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 9.33 and a beta of 1.12. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $63.02 and a 200-day simple moving average of $68.98. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.68, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a current ratio of 1.41.

Estee Lauder Companies (NYSE:EL) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The company reported $0.65 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.29 by $0.36. Estee Lauder Companies had a negative net margin of 5.89% and a positive return on equity of 15.60%. The business had revenue of $2.66 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.51 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.97 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 9.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that The Estee Lauder Companies Inc. will post 1.36 earnings per share for the current year.

Estee Lauder Companies Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 16th. Investors of record on Friday, May 30th were given a $0.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 30th. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.87%. Estee Lauder Companies’s payout ratio is currently -57.85%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently commented on EL shares. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on Estee Lauder Companies from $70.00 to $60.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 16th. Barclays increased their target price on Estee Lauder Companies from $56.00 to $63.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, May 29th. B. Riley reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $60.00 target price (down previously from $70.00) on shares of Estee Lauder Companies in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Wall Street Zen lowered Estee Lauder Companies from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Saturday, May 24th. Finally, DA Davidson reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $81.00 target price on shares of Estee Lauder Companies in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eighteen have issued a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $75.15.

Estee 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.