The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. (NYSE:EL) Stock Holdings Reduced by Virtu Financial LLC

Virtu Financial LLC lessened its holdings in shares of The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. (NYSE:EL) by 69.3% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 19,417 shares of the company’s stock after selling 43,904 shares during the quarter. Virtu Financial LLC’s holdings in Estée Lauder Companies were worth $1,936,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA increased its holdings in shares of Estée Lauder Companies by 79.4% during the 3rd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 5,723,746 shares of the company’s stock valued at $570,600,000 after acquiring an additional 2,533,006 shares during the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP raised its holdings in Estée Lauder Companies by 3,065.6% in the 2nd quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 1,983,083 shares of the company’s stock worth $211,000,000 after acquiring an additional 1,920,439 shares during the period. Two Sigma Advisers LP lifted its position in Estée Lauder Companies by 80.8% during the 3rd quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP now owns 2,934,200 shares of the company’s stock worth $292,510,000 after acquiring an additional 1,310,900 shares during the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp boosted its holdings in Estée Lauder Companies by 36.4% during the third quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 4,041,911 shares of the company’s stock valued at $402,938,000 after acquiring an additional 1,078,926 shares during the period. Finally, Independent Franchise Partners LLP boosted its holdings in Estée Lauder Companies by 44.4% during the second quarter. Independent Franchise Partners LLP now owns 3,466,048 shares of the company’s stock valued at $368,788,000 after acquiring an additional 1,066,320 shares during the period. 55.15% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Estée Lauder Companies Price Performance

Estée Lauder Companies stock opened at $81.01 on Friday. The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. has a 52 week low of $62.29 and a 52 week high of $159.75. The firm has a market cap of $29.08 billion, a P/E ratio of 144.66, a P/E/G ratio of 5.33 and a beta of 1.05. 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 business’s fifty day moving average is $78.85 and its two-hundred day moving average is $93.26.

Estée Lauder Companies (NYSE:EL) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported $0.14 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.09 by $0.05. Estée Lauder Companies had a net margin of 1.31% and a return on equity of 17.31%. The firm had revenue of $3.36 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.37 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.11 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 4.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts forecast that The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. will post 1.46 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Estée Lauder Companies Cuts Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 29th will be given a dividend of $0.35 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 29th. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.73%. Estée Lauder Companies’s payout ratio is currently 250.00%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Estée Lauder Companies

In related news, CEO Fabrizio Freda sold 10,969 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $67.76, for a total transaction of $743,259.44. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 295,838 shares in the company, valued at approximately $20,045,982.88. The trade was a 3.58 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Paul J. Fribourg bought 75,500 shares of Estée Lauder Companies stock in a transaction on Monday, November 18th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $64.93 per share, for a total transaction of $4,902,215.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 310,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $20,128,300. This represents a 32.20 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Corporate insiders own 12.78% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on EL shares. DA Davidson reissued a “buy” rating and set a $81.00 price objective on shares of Estée Lauder Companies in a research report on Wednesday, November 20th. Canaccord Genuity Group cut their target price on shares of Estée Lauder Companies from $100.00 to $75.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, November 1st. UBS Group lowered their price target on Estée Lauder Companies from $115.00 to $104.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, August 20th. Bank of America reduced their price objective on Estée Lauder Companies from $100.00 to $75.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Finally, Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on shares of Estée Lauder Companies from $100.00 to $85.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, November 1st. Nineteen 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, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $98.57.

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.