Phraction Management LLC Raises Stake in The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. (NYSE:EL)

Phraction Management LLC increased its stake in The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. (NYSE:EL) by 172.2% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 17,161 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 10,856 shares during the quarter. Phraction Management LLC’s holdings in Estée Lauder Companies were worth $1,287,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in EL. Van ECK Associates Corp raised its stake in Estée Lauder Companies by 23.6% in the 4th quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 4,996,404 shares of the company’s stock valued at $374,630,000 after acquiring an additional 954,493 shares during the period. Quent Capital LLC raised its stake in Estée Lauder Companies by 278.2% in the 4th quarter. Quent Capital LLC now owns 658 shares of the company’s stock valued at $49,000 after acquiring an additional 484 shares during the period. Peterson Wealth Services raised its stake in Estée Lauder Companies by 9.8% in the 4th quarter. Peterson Wealth Services now owns 1,506 shares of the company’s stock valued at $113,000 after acquiring an additional 134 shares during the period. Cambiar Investors LLC bought a new stake in Estée Lauder Companies in the 4th quarter valued at about $33,943,000. Finally, Savant Capital LLC bought a new stake in Estée Lauder Companies in the 4th quarter valued at about $1,385,000. 55.15% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Estée Lauder Companies Trading Down 2.4 %

Shares of EL opened at $69.04 on Thursday. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $76.44 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $82.34. The company has a quick ratio of 0.90, a current ratio of 1.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.75. The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. has a 1 year low of $62.29 and a 1 year high of $159.54.

Estée Lauder Companies (NYSE:EL) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The company reported $0.62 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.32 by $0.30. The firm had revenue of $4 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.98 billion. Estée Lauder Companies had a positive return on equity of 16.82% and a negative net margin of 4.61%. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 6.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.88 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts anticipate that The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. will post 1.37 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Estée Lauder Companies Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 28th 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 2.03%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 28th. Estée Lauder Companies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -71.79%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on EL shares. HSBC cut Estée Lauder Companies from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $100.00 price objective on the stock. in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. CICC Research began coverage on Estée Lauder Companies in a research report on Friday, December 27th. They set a “market perform” rating and a $82.00 price target on the stock. UBS Group upped their price target on Estée Lauder Companies from $74.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. DA Davidson reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $81.00 price target on shares of Estée Lauder Companies in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on Estée Lauder Companies from $74.00 to $80.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Twenty equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Estée Lauder Companies presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $86.00.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Paul J. Fribourg acquired 77,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 15th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $64.01 per share, with a total value of $4,960,775.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 234,500 shares in the company, valued at $15,010,345. This trade represents a 49.36 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CFO Akhil Shrivastava purchased 700 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 5th. The stock was bought at an average price of $65.79 per share, for a total transaction of $46,053.00. Following the acquisition, the chief financial officer now owns 2,381 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $156,645.99. This represents a 41.64 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders purchased 196,700 shares of company stock valued at $12,762,093. 12.78% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Estée 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.